Member Info for mulledwine

Brewin Dolphin issued a "buy" rating for Vertu Motors (VTU) with a reduced target price of 41p, down from 50p. Commenting following full-year results, the broker said the group delivered another strong set of numbers and is proving that it can deliver fully on its strategy of acquiring dealerships at a good price and then successfully turning around their profitability. That said, whilst the sector has a difficult short term outlook, the broker added that it believes the shares offer "very good value." Shares in Vertu were untouched at 30.5p.

9th May 2011 - Extract from Evil Knievil diary My attention has been drawn to the fact that a US broking firm, Gilder Gagnon Howe, has 7.3% of ASOS (ASC). Its website, www.gghc.com/AboutUs/what.aspx, suggests it aggregates small orders on massive leverage. I cannot understand why this approach is adopted. It may be that GGH has only to put down 10% margin whilst charging its clients 25% margin and that this is beneficial to GGH's cash flow. But that such a firm should clock up 7.3% of ASOS (or, given ASOS's staggering capitalisation of GBP1.7bn, GBP124m exposure) is very remarkable - it can't be investment that is on its mind. In the light of the very odd transactions in which Americans engage, I think ASOS has changed from pain trade (i.e. awaiting the vertiginous collapse) to outright short.

Galaxy - howdy again. Still at work here , just made a coffee and decided to have a quick squint at the boards! Everyone obviously has their cash limits for trading and must trade accordingly however if I may suggest something - try and NOT buy shares with little sums of money eg £200 - lets say it costs £35 ish (or whatever) to buy and sell those shares then you have to make a fair percentage profit just to cover your fees alone. If you buy a £1000 worth then its still £35 ish to buy and sell but you can make that back far quicker than in the £200 example. Try working it out for a 10% rise in each scenario and see what the return is. I appreciate you may feel safer spreading your share purchases around but it means you are spending a larger amount in fees and thus have to make much more to break even? However if you feel more comfortable doing it that way then so be it. Does that make sense ! Its been a hard shift so far and my head feels like cotton wool! ps dont worry about appearing foolish - no one knows this game inside out whatever they say! Everyone has to start somewhere. Have you read a book called the naked trader? Well worth getting for an insight into the shenannigans that take place.!

Pace upgraded to hold from sell at Canaccord Genuity, target price cut to 100p from 165p

Inchcape downgraded to hold from add at Brewin Dolphin, TP stays 400p

YouGov started with buy rating at Peel Hunt, target price 76p

Amlin sales up and says premiums rising By Michael Millar Date: Thursday 12 May 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Amlin, the biggest Lloyd’s of London insurer by market value, said sales went up 14% for the four months ended 30 April 2011 at £1,1bn. This compared to £964m in the same period of 2010 with much of the gain driven by new business in Amlin's UK division. The firm also said that following the natural disasters in Australia, New Zealand and Japan, rates were going up in the industry following a period of softening. Amlin said it had set aside £260m to cover claims for the New Zealand and Japanese earthquakes, in line with earlier estimates. Claims from the 2011 Queensland floods, which affected Brisbane and surrounding territories, are also materially unchanged from the estimated £15 million disclosed in April, the firm said. The company also announced has appointed Kim Hvirgel as the new Chief Executive of its wholly owned Netherlands-based subsidiary, ACI.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201105120700184350G

Eastern Platinum hit by $5.6m first quarter loss By Michael Millar Date: Thursday 12 May 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Eastern Platinum has reported a first quarter loss of $5.63m and given details of a violent industrial dispute at its Crocodile River Mine in South Africa. The firm put the loss down to lower production but said it was confident the impact of this was short term and that production and earnings would quickly return to anticipated levels. The firm said its flagship Crocodile River Mine (CRM) had been damaging following a wage dispute with members of the National Union of Mineworkers. It said following a break down in wage negotiations on 6th May employees drove mine vehicles through the security gate to the Zandfontein Mine. They then occupied the mine in what the company called “illegal action”. After staff vacated the mine the following day the firm said a safety inspection uncovered sabotage of underground electrical and pumping equipment that resulted in flooding, as well as damage to the ventilation system. The firm said no staff had been dismissed but those involved in the occupation had been suspended. The mine has now reopened but Eastern Platinum said there was “an unlawful blockade at the mine entrance to intimidate and prevent non-striking employees from going to work”. It added that workers who did not return to work on Thursday would be subject to legal action. "We regret these illegal actions by a very small minority of our employees at CRM and hope for a speedy resolution to this issue," said chief executive, Ian Rozier.

Thanks for the link bastimentos - interesting read.

UBM expands in South East Asia By Benjamin Chiou Date: Thursday 12 May 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Events and publishing group United Business Media (UBM) has acquired South East Asian exhibitions group AMB Exhibitions for an undisclosed sum. The firm – which operates in Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines - will add five tradeshows to UBM Asia’s portfolio, with shows serving the water, livestock, energy and mechanical/electrical industries. "The acquisition of AMB accelerates the expansion of UBM's exhibition business into South East Asia. UBM has existing interests in the core industries served by AMB's shows and complementary footprints in three of the region's fastest growing economies…as well as successful operations in Thailand and Singapore,” said UBM president and chief executive officer Jimé Essink. AMB generated revenues of $4m in 2010, two-thirds of which source from the group’s two largest shows, AsiaWater and ASEAN M&E Expo.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=20110512070000PC11B

Cheers Nighthawk and you

I know it might cost a little money but I wish they would improve their website a little!

Further re: licence discussions On 20 April 2011, the Company announced that it had received notice that a third party had also been granted exclusive rights by Pyromex Holding AG ("Pyromex") to use, own, assemble and install and operate Pyromex UHTG systems in Australia and also in certain other territories, contrary to information previously supplied by Pyromex to PowerHouse Energy, Inc. ("PowerHouse") and inconsistent with the disclosure contained in the Admission Document published by the Company on 31 March 2011. In order to reach a resolution to this matter, the Directors of Bidtimes adjourned the General Meeting of the Company from 26 April 2011 to 12 May 2011. The Company is pleased to announce that it has been advised that PowerHouse, Pyromex and the third party have entered into a non-binding memorandum of understanding the terms of which, once formally documented, are expected to result in Powerhouse being granted licenses consistent with the disclosures previously set out in the Admission Document. To allow the parties to finalise the necessary legal documentation Bidtimes has decided that the General Meeting to be held today will be adjourned until further notice.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201105120946154641G

Big increase in revenue but loss mucg the same as last year - ENV finding it increasingly difficult although they blame R and D for much of the loss figure which hopefully will come good for them in due course - difficult times though. These are the sort of companies that should be flourishing as we push for clean energy but its just not happening.

Research and Development ("R&D"). R&D costs increased significantly as we devoted increased engineering personnel resources to the development of our next generation Omni-series motor control unit and charger, as well as the continued testing of our EV vehicles, new battery technologies and electric motors. We also continued to allocate necessary resources to the development and testing of upgraded proprietary control software and DC-DC converters. Selling, General, and Administrative Expenses ("S, G & A"). S, G & A is comprised of activities in the executive, finance, marketing, field service and quality departments' compensation as well as related payroll benefits, and non-cash charges for depreciation and options expense. The Company's cost savings measures continue to be sustained and have become an integral part of the sales environment in 2011. The Company constantly evaluates contemporary or fully matured cost measures in the event of potential or future growth changes. Interest and Other Income (Expense). Interest and other expense increased in 2011 due to a loss in connection with a litigation settlement of $41,000 which we did not have in 2010.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS Period Ended March 31, 2011 and 2010 Revenues. Revenues in the current period benefited from U.S. government grant programs, resulting in increased sales for fulfillment of orders from Smith Electric Vehicles as well as Navistar Inc. The increase in revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2011 compared to 2010 was mainly due to the delivery of drive systems to Navistar and Smith Electric Vehicles. Revenues were also attributed to continued shipments of drive systems to First Auto Works ("FAW"). Although we have seen indications for future production growth, there can be no assurance there will be continuing demand for our products and services. Cost of Revenues. Cost of revenues consists of component and material costs, direct labor costs, integration costs and overhead related to manufacturing our products as well as inventory valuation reserve amounts. Cost of revenues increased primarily due to the increase in revenue. The increase in cost of revenues as a percentage of revenues was attributed to product mix and pass through revenue from HCATT as well as continuous improvement efforts. Gross Margin. The change in gross margin is primarily attributable to product mix and pass through revenue from HCATT. We continue to focus on key customer production contracts, maturity of our supply chain, and efficiencies gained through increased in-house manufacturing and inventory processes that have resulted in tighter controls over production costs. As we make deliveries on production contracts in 2011, we expect to achieve continued benefit from these initiatives, although we may continue to experience variability in our gross margin. Our gross margin may fluctuate based on the sales product mix from period to period.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201105120934484623G