Member Info for mulledwine

http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/ldpbusiness/business-local/2011/06/15/park-group-back-in-favour-after-troubled-decade-92534-28879357/

T.C - It sone hell of a chart since summer 2010.

With the performance of the UK commercial property sector linked closely to the performance of the underlying economy, it is no surprise the uncertain outlook is dividing investors’ opinions. Is this, however, reflected in the “rating” of the F&C Commercial Property Trust (FCPT) and UK Commercial Property Trust (UKCM) where the share prices are trading at a 12% premium to the underlying net asset value? Does the prospect of a generous dividend yield and a combination of lacklustre net asset value and dividend growth merit paying such a hefty premium? The Scotsman would argue that it does not.

T.C - I know, I have a problem ! Now now Zed - its the follow up research and copious notes and doodles that then make or break it for me! although of late there have been so many unforeseens that its not easy.

Hampers now account for less than 5% of Park Group’s sales. Instead, the company is concentrating more on pre-paid vouchers that can be redeemed at a range of retailers. The company is stuffed full of cash and can afford to jack up the dividend by 29% to 1.7p, with a final payment of 1.2p. The dividend looks set to rise further and the shares yield a prospective 3.8%.Worth tucking away if you can find them, says the Times.

Arden is becoming the first port of call for Indian businesses looking to raise cash in London that aren’t quite big enough for bulge-bracket firms. Arden earlier this year came up with a trading update which had analysts scurrying to up forecasts. It should be borne in mind, that as recently as last year they did the opposite after a profits warning. So earnings, and the shares, will be volatile. What’s more, a valuation of 23 times forecast looks fancy enough. A speculative buy, according to the Independent.

Miner ENRC‘s annual general meeting saw no fewer than four non-executive directors leave the board. Add in the fact that this month will see the expiry of the US quantitative easing programme, and we could be in for a period of underperformance as traders reassess the commodity outlook. If the market ends up taking a negative view of metals and minerals, that is likely to hit the mining sector as whole. But recent issues at ENRC could, we fear, make matters worse for this particular stock. Sell, says the Independent.

Analysts have been known to complain mildly about the slow progress of Oxford Instruments in finding promised acquisitions. The maker of high-tech analytical devices announced two yesterday, and the slow pace seems understandable. Such acquisitions are tricky, being more about providing a sympathetic working environment than hard cash, but chief executive Jonathan Flint says they are available. The shares are on a high 17 times’ this year’s earnings, but that does not seem unreasonable. Certainly, buy on any weakness, says the Times.

Performance during the period The VCT gained 3.3% over the 3 month period to 30 April 2011. This was a favourable result against the benchmark index (the FTSE AIM All-share Total Return) which ended the same period down 1.8%. The negative index performance reflects the beginning of the weakness in the commodities sector at the end of April due to concerns over the durability of the global economic recovery. Natural resource stocks have been the key driver behind AIM performance for over two years. The main contributors to the VCT's performance were Lo-Q, which announced strong results confirming its impressive growth and development; Tasty, which posted good like-for-like sales figures against a difficult economic backdrop for a restaurant chain; IDOX, following the acquisition of a licensing management software business; and Symphony Environmental, following full year results. The most disappointing performer was AssetCo, which announced that it's recent fund raising had been insufficient to stem the cashflow pressures, and a serious fall-out between various stake-holders became public. The company continues to trade but we have exited this position. Tristel also disappointed the market with a substantial downgrade to profit expectations. During the period, we completed qualifying deals in: Deltex Medical, a supplier of medical devices to monitor blood rate and flow during and after surgery, allowing fluid replacement to be optimised; Futura Medical, a developer of sexual health products that has signed three significant licensing deals with major distributors; and Microsaic, a designer of innovative mass spectrometry devices that are smaller, and quieter than their competitors' products, and will sell at about half the price. We also added to the non-qualifying portfolio, acquiring, amongst others, holdings in EROS International, an Indian media business; and OPG, an Indian power generator. We added to the VCT's holding in London Capital Group through participation in a placing at a valuation that we deemed to be compelling. The turnover of the qualifying portfolio has now slowed as most of the small, high risk holdings have been exited. However, there were two further material qualifying sales during the period of ILX and the majority of the VCT's holding in Mediwatch. The limited liquidity afforded by small companies listed on AIM, particularly those with market capitalisations below £10m, made the qualifying portfolio reconstruction a slow process. However, we feel more confident about the remaining constituents, which have been supplemented with some new qualifying investments. In the non-qualifying portfolio, we sold NCC Group and Supergroup, both at acceptable profits, and took profits in Entertainment One and New Britain Palm Oil, although both remain material holdings.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201106151229264932I

Sutton Harbour rues aviation drag Date: Wednesday 15 Jun 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Port operator and regeneration group Sutton Harbour’s profits fell sharply as its now discarded airline and soon-to-be closed airport proved a “major cash drain.” The company posted a pre-tax profit on continuing operations of £1.71m for the period, down from £6.45m the previous year. The company is not paying a dividend. "The airline and Plymouth City Airport have recently been a major cash drain for the group and significant losses have been incurred,” chairman Michael Knight said. “Our recent actions will mean that the group's exposure to cash volatility and the associated business risks will be significantly reduced going forward.” Sutton sold Air South West in November and announced in April that Plymouth City Airport are closing. The company now intends to focus on its marine and regeneration activities. It has been named as preferred bidder for the development and operation of a marina in Plymouth. --- RG

In his statement to shareholders, Chairman Michael Knight said: "The airline and Plymouth City Airport have recently been a major cash drain for the Group and significant losses have been incurred. Our recent actions will mean that the Group's exposure to cash volatility and the associated business risks will be significantly reduced going forward. We have a clear strategy which means we will be concentrating our resources, time and efforts on marine and regeneration activities where we have proven successes over the years. We have a high quality asset base which is being developed further; some exciting opportunities to extend these activities; and, a good project pipeline for the future."

Operations: · Sale of Air South West completed on 30 November 2010 · Intention to cease operations at Plymouth City Airport as announced in April 2011 · Good performance from marine activities; Preferred bidder for two marina projects including the 400 berth marina in Cowes and a new 190 berth marina in the Milbay area of Plymouth. · Resilient performance from property portfolio; increased rental income and fair value surplus on investment property. · Heads of terms signed with Sir Robert McAlpine for procurement of BBC building including 28 residential apartments. · Exciting pipeline of development projects in Portland, Exeter and at Sutton Harbour each involving regeneration of urban waterfront. · Sale of fourth tranche of surplus airport land expected during current financial year.

Financials: · Revenues for the period of £12.27m (2010: £17.65m) · Operating profit (continuing operations), before fair value adjustments on investment property, of £2.3m (2010: profit of £6.8m) · Profit before tax (continuing operations) of £1.71m after fair value adjustment on investment property (fair value surplus of £0.1m) (2010: profit of £6.01m after fair value deficit of £0.5m) · Loss for the period from discontinued operations of £8.41m (2010: £2.39m loss) giving loss for the year of £6.45m (2010: £2.10m profit) · Board is not recommending a Final Dividend (2010: 1.9p total dividend per share) due to need to conserve headroom on bank facilities · Earnings per share from continuing operations (basic) of 3.11p (2010: 7.79p earnings) · Gearing of 58.2% at 31 March 2011 (2010: 35.0%) · Net assets at 31 March 2011 of £36.1m (2010: £43.1m) including surplus on revaluation of owner-occupied property of £0.66m (2010: surplus of £0.22m)] · Net assets per share at 31 March 2011 of 57.3p (2010: 68.5p) · £25m three year banking facility successfully concluded during the year with RBS

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201106150700124485I

YCO wins big yacht contract Date: Wednesday 15 Jun 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Superyacht company YCO has won a contract to build a big yacht, the company has announced. The project, to be undertaken in “a leading European shipyard” will involve “the full custom build of a motor yacht in excess of 80m and will be undertaken in conjunction with a world-renowned, UK based Superyacht Design House,” the company said. The project is expected to deliver material revenues until it is completed in 2014, the company said. “YCO is now involved with every major European shipyard and this latest project is further validation of YCO as a leader in the brokerage and management of the world's most significant superyachts,” said chief executive Charlie Birkett.

Sopheon sees rising FY revenue Date: Wednesday 15 Jun 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Software and services provider Sopheon said full year revenue visibility for 2011 from contracted business and recurring revenue streams has now risen to £6.6m from £6.1m at the start of May following strong demand for its software systems. The group said it has now concluded 15 new and extension license orders since the start of the year, up from 11 orders earlier last month. Sopheon added it was hoping to conclude on a 'substantial amount of business' in the remaining weeks of June. If successful, the group said it would exceed the strong first half revenue performance of last year. "We are energized by the strength of our market position, and by our potential for continued, substantial growth," Sopheon said.

Nice reversal of fortunes here

In our Full Year results, we were delighted to report strong growth with revenues up by 28% to £10.5m, and a turnaround in profits, from an EBITDA loss of £0.2m to a profit of £1.5m. After a difficult 2009, which included taking some very tough spending adjustments, it was gratifying to see a return to growth and such a strong improvement in our bottom-line performance. We also strengthened the Group's working capital position by refreshing our debt facilities with BlueCrest Capital, and by extending the maturity of convertible debt. This allowed us to enter 2011 with the confidence to expand headcount in targeted areas of the business. Most recently, we announced that we had filled two key leadership positions by hiring two vice presidents responsible for the EMEA region and for product development respectively. In our trading update on 5 May, we noted that we had concluded 11 new and extension license orders since the start of the year; we are pleased to report this has since been increased to 15. Full year revenue visibility for 2011 from contracted business and recurring revenue streams has now risen to £6.6 million compared to £6.1 million on 5 May. This also compares favorably to the £6.0 million visibility noted at the time of our AGM statement a year ago. Nevertheless, last year this was followed by a very strong close to the second quarter, leading to record first half revenues. As at the time of last year's AGM announcement, we currently have a very substantial amount of business that we are working to close in the remaining weeks of June. If successful, this would enable us to exceed the strong first half revenue performance of last year. In this regard, customer procurement practices remain thorough and cautious which, as we have noted in previous announcements, can make it difficult to accurately predict the timing and value of individual sales. In our Statement of 5 May we noted that market interest in Sopheon's solutions was showing a strong positive trend. That trend continues. Nearly twice as many prospective buyers visited our website and responded to our promotional campaigns from the start of this year through early June compared to the same period in 2010. This surge is partly attributable to prominent affirmation of the value of our software by influential third-party sources, including analysts and industry publications. One of our principal advantages in garnering such attention is that Sopheon is unique in offering a software system that provides end-to-end support encompassing product strategy, ideation and product development process execution. We are energized by the strength of our market position, and by our potential for continued, substantial growth."

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201106150700114473I