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nd incentivise higher output did the rest.
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Finally, share price movements look telling. Now the market cannot be right all of the time, or no one would ever make any money, but its views must be respected. And right now, oil shares are performing remarkably well, given the circumstances.
Markets are trying to convince themselves that America’s headline inflation figure of 9.1pc for June is the peak and that its central bank, the Federal Reserve, can start to loosen monetary policy next year, especially as July’s reading was 8.5pc. Since July 13 and the publication of that “peak” inflation figure, the price of Brent crude oil has fallen by 5pc.
But global oil shares have risen by 14pc and shares in global oil equipment and services companies have gained 11pc, using two US-quoted tracker funds as benchmarks, namely the Energy Select Sector SPDR fund and the iShares US Oil Equipment & Services ETF.
Oil may be saying one thing but oil stocks are saying another and the louder the latter speak the more attention investors may have to pay.
Questor will stick with Shell. Hold.
Russ Mould is investment director at AJ Bell, the stockbroker
Such arguments can be countered.
First, demand for energy continues to rise but supply remains constrained, thanks to environmental policies, geopolitical sanctions and oil companies’ response to pressure not to drill. This feels like a recipe for a rising price.
Second, windfall taxes and price controls have a very poor record of achieving their goals. The American president Richard Nixon imposed price controls on oil in 1971 and one of his successors, Jimmy Carter, added a windfall profits tax in 1980.
The 1970s were wracked by higher energy prices and it can be argued that cheaper energy ushered in a new era of prosperity only in the 1980s after Carter’s successor, Ronald Reagan, scrapped both the price controls, in 1981, and the windfall tax, in 1988. Additional legislation to provide tax breaks and incentivise higher output did the rest.
In the case of Shell, however, this column will make an exception and stay firmly put. In doing so we maintain our exposure to oil through this giant company as well as via the up-and-coming producer i3 Energy and the oil equipment and services play Hunting, covered here a week ago. Frankly, it is tempting to take a look at BP, too, especially as BP now offers a higher dividend yield than Shell, of some 4.6pc, but we digress.
This is because sentiment does not feel bullish on oil or oil stocks. The price of crude oil has fallen by a quarter since its March peak of $128. There are rumours that Shell’s chief executive, Ben van Beurden, is thinking of stepping aside next year. The G7 group of leading economies has imposed a price cap on (Russian) oil, while windfall taxes are in place and further such levies cannot be ruled out.
As a result of these three factors, Shell’s share price is no higher now than just before coronavirus swept around the globe in early 2020, despite the subsequent surge in oil and gas price and the company’s profits.
Yes, the dividend is lower now than it was then, and North Sea taxes are higher. But the lowly valuation multiple attributed to Shell’s earnings by the investors is still implicitly saying that oil and gas price strength is not going to last, or that if it does then government action in the form of taxes or price controls will weigh on profits and cash flow anyway.
The oil price is saying one thing but oil shares are saying another. So hold Shell
Gushing cash and looking cheap, normally we’d worry that Shell was too good to be true. Russ Mould explains why it’s still worth holding
Picture of Russ Mould
Normally this column would run a mile (or at least take profits) when a company’s profits are booming, cash-flow is gushing and the stock looks amazingly cheap on a forecast price-to-earnings ratio of less than five times, a figure that is only a fraction higher than the dividend yield.
After all, this all screams of a scenario where everything is just going so well that it can hardly get better. And, to use the sometimes perverse logic of financial markets, if things cannot get better then at some stage they are going to get worse, and if they are going to get worse the share price will sniff it out. And if that is the case, it is time to lock in any gains now and move on before anyone else does.
I am as some of you know a long time investor. If you look back at what these two have achieved over the last two years, it really is quite amazing. Yet we have other long term holders moaning about a delayed RNS. History suggests it isn’t overdue at all in fact. Why the inpatients chaps? Enjoy the ride either up or down, relax and collect your monthly dividends.
Regards
Thungela could be crowned the UK market’s dividend king
The coal miner is benefiting from surging commodity prices with shares up tenfold in 14 months
18 August 2022|News
Coal producer Thungela Resources (TGA) is on a 2022 dividend yield of more than 40%, based on forecasts from Liberum. It is expected to pay above-average dividends for at least two more years.
The scramble for energy as the world emerged from the pandemic and Russia invaded Ukraine has seen thermal coal prices soar and Thungela’s shares gain nearly 10-fold on the 150p price at which they started trading after its demerger from Anglo American (AAL) last June.
Liberum forecasts 642.2p per share in dividends for 2022 versus 93.1p in 2021. That means it could pay out more than four times the initial cost of the shares in dividends this year alone.
For 2023 the investment bank forecasts Thungela will pay out 357.8p which implies a 23.8% yield based on the current £15.06 share price; and 188p for 2024 which equates to a 12.5% yield.
It is possible the dividend could come in lower than Liberum’s expectations if Thungela decided to do an acquisition, thermal coal prices crash, or the production problems linked to the poor performance of South Africa’s state-owned rail operator Transnet continue.
In the long term, prospective investors would need to weigh the ethical dilemmas and potential risks of being exposed to a polluting fuel like coal as the world looks to move to net zero and the evidence of the impact of climate change continues to mount.
Hi
I did my best as a bit thick with technology!
Regards
Other coal miners have also posted strong results. Glencore this month declared a record $18.9bn (£15.6bn) in half-year profit, boosted by soaring coal prices. The FTSE 100 mining and trading giant last year took full control of Colombia’s Cerrejón mine, buying out its partners BHP and Anglo-American.
Overall, global coal production has fallen only slightly in recent years even as investors try to move away from the product. Production was 8,173m tonnes in 2021 compared with 8,180 – 8,256m tonnes a year between 2012 and 2014.
Mr Ndlovu said Thungela’s results were being held back by problems on the railways from its mines and ports. Theft of copper cables and insufficient maintenance have crippled South Africa’s freight network.
Germany is also re-opening mothballed coal power plants, with Robert Habeck, its economy minister, describing the move as a “necessary evil”.
But with demand rising, supplies of coal have been constrained as traders shun Russian products. Other major exporters, including the US and South Africa, have struggled to get their products to market due to infrastructure problems. Analysts at Fitch Ratings believe coal loaded at Australia’s Newcastle port, a key benchmark, will average $320 per tonne this year, compared with $185 in the final quarter of last year.
Thungela sold its coal for an average $240 per tonne in the first six months of 2022, compared with $75 a year ago.
The company’s shares have climbed more than 600pc since the demerger, from about 200p to £14.34 yesterday, valuing it at £2bn. They climbed 1.9pc yesterday as Thungela also announced an interim dividend of R60 per share.
In its half-year results, Thungela’s chief executive July Ndlovu said: “Demand for affordable energy sources such as thermal coal escalated amid the energy security crisis which was exacerbated by the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.”
£2bn
Market valuation of coal miner Thungela, which City analysts last year put at zero. Its shares have risen 600pc since
At the time, research outfit Boatman Capital argued Anglo-American had been over-optimistic about future coal sales while understating future costs. “Our valuation of Thungela is zero,” Boatman said.
Many countries have been trying to turn their back on coal in recent years due to its impact on global warming. Following commitments at the Cop26 United Nations conference on climate change last November, organisers said coal was being “consigned to history”.
However, demand for the polluting fuel has soared since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The conflict has disrupted global energy supplies, sending the price of oil, gas and coal sharply higher.
High gas prices as Russia restricts supplies to Europe have pushed many economies back towards coal as an alternative, even if in some cases only temporarily.
In the UK, Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary, has asked coal-fired generators due to close in September to stay open this winter in case they are needed for back-up power supplies.
Profits at ‘worthless’ miner soar 3,000pc
Anglo-American was forced by investors to spin off ‘dirty’ coal business in South Africa last summer
RACHEL MILLARD
A MINING business described as “worthless” just 14 months ago has seen profits jump almost 3,000pc thanks to a scramble for coal provoked by Russia’s war on Ukraine. Thungela Resources, which mines coal for power stations in South Africa, posted profits of 9.6bn rand (£485m) for the first half of 2022, compared with R351m last year.
The reversal of fortunes comes less than two years after a City analyst declared the business worthless.
Thungela was spun out of Anglo-American in June 2021 after the FTSE 100 mining giant came under pressure from shareholders to ditch fossil fuels.
Of course, there will be some crazy fads as well. The last bull market included a boom in plant-based meats that seems inexplicable now, not to mention the special purpose vehicles that flourished briefly at the peak before predictably crashing. This one will probably involve a robot doing something or other, not very well.
But that is part of the fun of a rising market – a few bubbles emerge alongside some genuinely impressive new businesses.
True, the global economy may look in dire condition right now. Inflation is far from coming under control. We will see interest rates rise higher. Energy rationing may have to be imposed across much of Europe, including the UK. There is still plenty of chaos and pain ahead.
Even so, the markets are always looking forward. In reality, the new bull run has already started – and its big themes and breakout stars are about to emerge.
Every bull market is dominated by a few big themes. Last time around it was the lockdown stocks, when we briefly imagined we would stay at home forever. Zoom and the upmarket exercise bike manufacturer Peloton were its stars. Before that it was the rise of the web, as well as environmentally friendly bets, with Netflix, Spotify and of course the electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla proving highly popular.
What will be the mega trends of this bull market? Here are three to watch.
First, military technology, or “miltech” as it will probably soon be known in venture capital circles. The war in Ukraine looks like it may turn into a brutal stalemate that runs for years. The Cold War in the Pacific has already started, with the United States and China competing for control of the world’s most contested ocean. Defence spending is already rising, and that is only going to continue. There will be lots of space for companies with new weapons systems, and new ways of taking the fight to the enemy – and investors will get excited about all of them.
Next, redesigning supply chains. “Friendshoring” is the kind of ghastly jargon that management consultants come up with on a bad day. Even so, there is an element of truth in it.
The one thing every major manufacturer and retailer has discovered over the last couple of years is that supply chains are far too stretched, too vulnerable to disruption, and about to get too expensive as well.
Logistics hasn’t been fashionable or exciting for a long time – for the obvious reason that it is really dull – but the trend towards sourcing supplies from closer, friendlier neighbours will accelerate, and the companies making that happen will do well.
‘A few bubbles emerge alongside some new impressive businesses’
Finally, energy. Over the last year we have discovered how fragile our power resources are, and how dangerously reliant we have been on a handful of hostile countries for supplies.
The demand for energy security will be insatiable. At the same time, the transition to green technologies will be accelerated.
Add those two trends together and there will be huge demand for companies offering everything from energy storage to high capacity batteries, as well as alternative fuels ranging from solar to wind to fusion. A Tesla or two will emerge in that space – and might even be owned by Elon Musk.
A golden chance to capitalise on bull market
Matthew Lynn
Picture of Matthew Lynn
It’s over. True, interest rates are still rising, inflation is running out of control and real wages are falling at an unprecedented rate – and a recession is looming. But despite all that gloom, this week the bear market on the Nasdaq officially came to a close. The index has now bounced back by 20pc since its low point, the standard definition for the end of a bear market. Since the tech-heavy Nasdaq now leads the way for markets everywhere, we can be sure that the other major bourses won’t be far behind.
In truth, the new bull market has already begun. Since that typically involves the index roughly doubling over a three-year run there is plenty of upside ahead.
What will that look like? Investors should be watching for a boom in military hardware, especially involving new technologies; for a shortening of supply lines as products are made closer to home; and for a boom in anything related to energy storage or alternative fuels as we switch to green power. Every bull market generates a handful of real stars, and a series of mega trends – and this one won’t be any different.
With a 2.9pc gain last Wednesday, helped by better than expected inflation data, the key Nasdaq index ended its worst bear market since 2008. While still some way short of its all time high reached last November, it has rallied 20pc over 55 days. Given that it was the major tech stocks that witnessed the worst of the carnage, the rout clearly seems to be over. The broader Dow Jones is close to ending its correction, and other major indices are rallying around the world. Even the typically dismal FTSE 100, with its dull collection of banks and mining and oil giants, has settled above 7,500. Add it all up, and the bear market of 2020 is over.
As it turned out, this was a very typical market collapse. According to data from Bespoke Research, the Nasdaq fell by 33.7pc over 209 days, against the average for a Nasdaq bear market of a 33pc fall spread over 225 days.
Anyone who bought during those few torrid months will soon, at least if history is any guide, be feeling pretty pleased with themselves. The average Nasdaq bull market typically clocks up total gains of 135pc over 841 days.
Within that there can be very wide variations. The strongest Nasdaq bull market ran from 2009 to 2018 with the index rising fivefold over that time.
The weakest ran for a mere 24 days in January 2001 when the index rallied by 24pc (a bit of a damp squib, all things considered). If this one just comes close to the average, however, there is plenty of potential upside from here on in.