Member Info for LWHL

It is one of the reasons why I now have a hard rule that I will only trade, rather than invest, in an AIM stock.

And limit position sizes quite tightly, at that.

It basically feels like you are always playing the greater fool theory in AIM stocks, IMO.

Sure, any company, be it large or small, main market or AIM, can fail.

And it is not always the result of an incompetent or corrupt BOD.

But on AIM in particular, it very often is one or the other, from the many, many examples I have seen in the past eight years or so and counting.

Anyway, as a neutral observer now, I will continue to watch with interest to see how this one plays out.

Would not rule out returning for a trade perhaps, but with SOH in charge, zero chance I would consider putting this one back in the investment basket, even if it was not on AIM.

But those are just my thoughts, and not a suggestion or recommendation for anyone to buy or sell etc. GLA.

There have been several examples on AIM in the past 12 months or so, where, and in some cases, seemingly out of nowhere, it has been announced that the BOD were going to de-list and take the entity private.

Usually citing a lack of liquidity on AIM, or lack of sufficient interest from major shareholders to support a fund raise.

Not going to mention names, but easy enough to find them in the public domain.

You can then draw your own conclusions as to whether some smelled bad, or appeared sincere.

I remember commenting on one of them at the time, offering my condolences to those shareholders (not one of mine, luckily) but also wondering whether the same might happen to some of my own AIM positions.

This was one of them that I had in mind at the time, in truth, although I did not act on that sentiment, nor was it related to the reason for my eventual decision to fully close out here either.

You could forgive some shareholders in those examples above for thinking that, when finally their investment looked like it was going to bear fruit, the rug was pulled out from under them.

Because in more than one case, the business was starting to look pretty good. One of them had given a very encouraging update only a few days before, if memory serves correct.

Far fewer protections for minor shareholders in a private company, versus a listed one, as I am sure some of you know.

Not that AIM offers much in the way of protection, or scrutiny, some might conclude!

Some degree of cynicism is healthy and sensible in business of course, but I think you have to take it to a whole new level when it comes to AIM and the tiddlers in particular.

FWIW, I am undecided on whether this one is where it is by accident or design. The result has been the same for me anyway, so in that sense it does not matter. GLA.

If it hits 70p, we will likely see 67p-ish and perhaps lower, based on the charts (according to my take on them anyway).

Now we are at this price, I am hoping to see that 74p-ish I mentioned before.

Because it will trigger a buy order, and will also hopefully offer some support in that range. Subject to my chart reading skills being reasonable, which is open to debate even in my own mind, lol. GLA.

It will be a source of amazement to me if the Exchequer sees an increase in revenue after these direct and stealth tax hikes.

Laffer curve, and other reliable metrics.

Not something that you can expect a government, with absolutely no real world/business experience to understand. Seemingly the same for their advisers in the civil service.

Furthermore, IMO the risk of stagflation has (further) increased with this Budget. Borrowing like a junkie seeking their next fix will not only have ramifications for inflation in the pipes though.

But maybe this time will be different? After all, no government seems to think that doing the same thing that did not work in the past, will yield a similar result to the failures that went before.

None of which gives the BOD here, or elsewhere, a free pass to continue to reward themselves generously without justification.

These macro and micro challenges are exactly where they earn that considerable corn.

Artemis increasing....

I doubt it, personally. Technically, PM's are several standard deviations above, so a pull back is both healthy and welcome.

I do not think either gold or silver has hit a long term top yet, but we shall see. GLA.

I think we need a Maggie on steroids soon. Things are much worse today than they were in the 1970's, but I will try not to de-rail further :)

Anyway, do let us know if you hear back after your entirely reasonable set of questions to the BOD.

GLA.

I do not want higher prices in the shops. I want minimal government interference in, well, pretty much every aspect of commerce and life, really.

Price rises are a consequence of too much government.

And there is more than enough socialism without shareholders falling down the same rabbit hole and being willing to sacrifice stock performance on some flimsy basis or other :)

This especially applies to senior management of said stocks. Unless they want to renegotiate their own terms and conditions to be more aligned with the lowest paid...lol.

Well, the CEO can take a pay cut, along with the rest of the Board, if they do not want to make the necessary savings elsewhere :) To be blunt, these types of scenarios are exactly why the senior staff get paid so handsomely. To make the big decisions. And make the right decisions.

When the VIX settles down somewhat and if it holds above the 50 DMA. That is my plan anyway.

Were it not for how the markets are generally wetting the bed, the price action here would be a cause for concern.

As it is, buy the dip is probably not as mad as it might sound :) GLA.

Thanks. I watched it. Cannot say it inspired me to change my opinion on this one.

Still no inside buying either, I see. Plus ca change. GLA.

That was a rapid volte-face, Wiscos. Not much of a change in the SP from your staying put comment to your goodbye comment. No RNS that I can see either to prompt this decision.

Not saying your decision is wrong of course, just surprised.

Anyway, good luck with your future trades...and especially good luck to those of us who are going to keep on the ride :)

Volumes will collapse if card prices 5X overnight. I cannot see any change to sales volumes with even a 30% price hike.

And I expect to see the better retailers finding a range of innovative ways to absorb these tax rises without having to take a total haircut to this effect.

I am inclined to agree with the scenarios put forward by Zed. Albeit I think I am being a little more conservative than him, with a lower price target than the range he suggested.

But as always, time will tell. And while not part of my thesis here, equally, we cannot entirely discount a potential bid offer.

In a market like this one, 120p might attract enough interest IMO.

Perhaps less, if the US update is merely solid, rather than spectacular. Not long to find out on that front, if memory serves correct. GLA.

Depends on whether or not she is wearing those special 'earrings' lol.

No idea how anyone can be excited or worried about either of those candidates winning. Neither are going to get control over the debt pile. Neither are going to get inflation under control. Both seem to be in hock to the Fed, as if central banks are not part of the problem in the first place!

But as to KH providing some policy details...like what? Reparations (vague and unspecified as far as I am aware) and turning the page. Whatever that means.

Anyway, this one caught my eye after seeing it on the loser board.

I have pondered it from time to time over a few years, but never took the plunge.

Probably would open a maiden position, were I not looking to add to a few existing names. But if it hits 9 flat (give or take), that would be too tempted for me.

If that day never comes, then GLA and try not to exercise too much energy on the US election.

It is one big game, and you are not invited to join in, regardless of which side you back :)

That is what a lot of us are hoping for this year too, lol.

Must say it has dropped more than I was expecting. Cheapskate BOD not buying a chunk after results has played a part in this price action IMO.

It needs to form a bottom (which I thought it finally had, but clearly not!) before it will attract new money IMO.

Hopefully this comment will age badly though, lol. GLA.

Your post is one of those, where if I could recommend more than once, I would.

He really has made a complete and utter mess of this company. And is clearly failing in his fiduciary duty to shareholders, by any metric I can think of.

I believe that had things been better managed over the years, this would likely have been a gem.

SBTX shareholders must be desperate for him to sell off the remaining silverware, so they can be shot of him as well.

I actually made some nice profits in that one a while ago, but it was the OPTI overhang that led to me eventually taking it all off the table there.

I should have cut my losses in this one during that pump.

That is entirely on me, because I have been in enough AIM stocks and watched many others, to know what the likelihood/outcome would be.

But I stuck with it, because it was an investment to me, and for better or worse, I give my investments a long time to come good (or prove to me beyond reasonable doubt to my mind that it is a dud).

Anyway, like I said the other day, hope it works out for you all and if enough of you decide to try and call an EGM here, then I will be rooting for you.

Ex div today and not unusual for a stock to sell off more than the div sum on the day.

It is why many traders try and dump first thing on these occasions. You can usually buy back cheaper with good timing, I have found. Although I have not done so myself on this one.

But in this instance, with a best case scenario of only a small gain, not worth it, IMO.

This is a macro play now until Xmas anyway, IMO.

Yes. I think another wave of inflation is pretty much nailed on, now. It was IMO likely even before this fiscal borrowing flexibility initiative (lol). Stagflation risk has increased too.

And yes, when a government interferes in matters of private enterprise, it almost always ends up worse for the employee and the customer. I am convinced that this time will be no different.

Not to mention the growing disincentive to work hard, take risks and progress your career in so many fields. The minimum wage continues to expand, and suck ever more people into this maximum wage.

Sooner or later, the consequences of this phenomenon are going to become impossible to ignore. That might yet be a few more years off.

But, we all have to try and manage the cards that we are dealt. As shareholders, that means we keep the BOD on their toes and focused on delivering value for our investment in this company.

There can be no charity in business. Especially when the state takes more than a fair share from those who actually pay to keep the lights on. And pick up the bar bill in the Commons. And all the many other overheads and expenses that the ordinary people have virtually no say in. It was ever thus. GLA.

They do seem to have put in place some strong capital buffers, to protect against this headwind, well in advance of this ruling.

Having done some more research in this name now, I can see why some of you have been buying the dips.

I guess a current unknown is what, if any, impact it will have on short term future business activity as well.

It certainly looks like it might be bad for the consumer, who might struggle to get these types of loans now. I see a few companies have pulled these deals altogether, for the moment.

Must say it is getting tempting to me for a potential trade, but I need to do some more homework first.

Might end up missing the boat, but I try to avoid simply diving into a new name these days. GLA.

The Guardian suggested this name 'could suffer a £252 million blow'. So the numbers seem to be quite wide-ranging, based on what you suggested RBC speculated on.

It is all up in the air right now, clearly.

Of greater concern to my mind, is the potential for wider contagion, as Martin Lewis seems to have also concluded.

And all for what sound reason? The more I look into this, the more I think this is absolutely, entirely and utterly bonkers.

I must be missing something obvious, but I cannot see it yet. Hey ho.