Member Info for Paulleydee

Completely agree. Ashley just bought more Hugo Boss too, as revealed late Friday. I think he’s buying more here too, Asos tend to drag their feet on RNS releases - think they have 3 days from when they are made aware of something?

He’s just added 1.5 per cent to Hugo boss stake, I am highly confident he will have been doing the same with asos and I am expecting an rns on this very soon

alliance News) - Frasers Group PLC has increased its interest in German fashion designer Hugo Boss AG by 1.5 percentage points, according to a company statement on Friday.

The FTSE-100 Derbyshire-based department store operator has a 30% interest via put options that it has sold, up from 28.5% as of October 24, while still owning 4.3% of the shares of Hugo Boss. This gives a 34.3% interest, up from 32.8% previously.

The company said after taking into account the premium it will receive for the put options, its maximum aggregate exposure its interest in Hugo Boss is around EUR1.0 billion.

On October 24, the SportsDirect owner said its maximum exposure for the interest in Hugo Boss was EUR960 million, up from EUR900 million in June. Back then, it held a 4.9% stake via shares and a further 26% via options.

Earlier in October, Frasers also bought a 5.1% stake in FTSE 250-listed online retailer Asos PLC. That would make Frasers the sixth largest shareholder in Asos, according to data from Morningstar.

Shares were up 2.5% at 662.00 pence on Friday afternoon in London.

New article in Retail Gazette tonight’s suggests Ashley is deadly serious about getting Asos. I think he has been buying more - RNS tomorrow perhaps.

…”Top AJ Bell analyst Danni Hewson says that Frasers is looking to ape omnichannel bellwether Next.

“It’s looking to emulate what Next has done because that has been incredibly successful,” she says.

Hewson says that like Next, Frasers Group has its eye on becoming an online department store and through its hybrid online and stores model can maximise its margin opportunity and take some of the cost out of servicing online.

“Frasers Group has got a really smart business model and an opportunity to use its warehouses and storefronts as sort of post offices for people to drop stuff back off,” explains Hewson.

“Frasers Group can avoid some of the pitfalls that Boohoo and Asos have had because it can provide people with other options for returning item.”

Makes perfect sense - Ashley in a position to solve the costly returns problem. He can offer to accept returns for free still but they must be dropped off at store. Cuts all that cost. Plus the items returned can go straight back out on the rack in store.

Perfect!

It feels like the tables have turned rapidly here.
Shorters now in a VERy precarious position.

The BBC’s business correspondent just said on the 6 o’clock bulletin that’s it’s becoming clear to markets that hundreds of thousands of households will now not face the worse case scenarios of a cost of living squeeze. Mortgage rates already coming down, Rishi ‘probably’ will extend the energy bills cap etc

Looking much better

https://ajot.com/news/dhl-supply-chain-partners-with-u.k-based-fashion-retailer-boohoo-to-expand-in-the-u.s

Could have helped boohoo last day or two but doesn’t explain the huge rose for Asos too.

Although I think with Asos it’s clear a takeover could well be coming fairly soon

It’s clear “everything” as you say has NOT been rising around ten percent like Boohoo and Asos
Most shares rising yes, but not in the league of boohoo and Asos yesterday and today

This is great news

https://www.just-style.com/news/boohoo-eyes-us-sales-growth-with-first-stateside-warehouse/

From Reuters city desk evening market report:

ASOS gained 13.8% after Frasers Group built a more than 5% stake in the online fashion retailer.

Not many shares have bounced 16 per cent though !

Mr Ashley buying more perhaps?
This could get red hot
Shorts VERY exposed now.

Berenberg - Asos price target 1,200 pence - 'buy'

Quoted on BBC News earlier

The owner of Sports Direct has become the fourth-largest shareholder in online fashion retailer Asos.
Frasers Group, which is owned by billionaire Mike Ashley, now owns 5.1% of Asos after building up shares in the company that holds the Topshop brand.
The company has bought up a number of UK retailers over the past few years spanning sportswear, fashion, furniture and bikes.
It now owns 4.3% Hugo Boss.
"Frasers Group has extensive ambitions to grow the business inside and outside of the UK and is constantly exploring the potential for further expansion," the company said.
The retail giant added the move was the latest example of its "its drive to expand and acquire businesses and brands that can strengthen Frasers Group".
Mr Ashley, who founded the sportswear retailer Sports Direct, has in the past gone on to take over businesses he invests in, including House of Fraser.
This year he stepped down as chief executive of the company, handing over the role to his son-in-law, Michael Murray, though Mr Ashley remains the controlling shareholder in the group.
Mike Ashley bought up a host of well known brands over the years and it seems that his son in law Michael Murray also has a similar appetite for deals.
Frasers Group has been on a bit of a spending spree this year.
Now it's the fourth largest investor in Asos. So what's the new chief executive up to?.
Frasers has already said it wants to expand its business both here and abroad. It clearly has the financial firepower to do so.
Danni Hewson, financial analyst at AJ Bell, said Mr Ashley's latest moves showed "clearly the retail kingpin is not done with the sector just yet".
"Asos' financial results revealed some significant problems, but Ashley clearly believes there is still value in the brand," she added.

Asos declining to comment tonight when contacted by the Guardian!

Media coverage galore today and this evening earlier on Sky it was mentioned in a business briefing with Ashley spokesperson quoted as telling the news org it was a ‘strategic’ business move to develop a ‘relationship and partnership’ with Asos.

Will be interesting to watch his next move.

I don’t think there is any rule such as you state!
I think buds generally come in around 30 to 50 per cent over the CURRENT price, so a foreign investor or Ashley could get Asos for as little as 9 quid or a tenner

If Mike Ashley could get his hands on £4bn of yearly Asos revenues I suspect he’d achieve a significant profit ahead. The guy knows how to make his businesses highly efficient. Demand building ahead of tomorrow o hear and a lot cheaper in forward multiples than Boo

I recall talk recently of a middle east billionaire sniffing around and now Mike Ashley increased his stake.

All to play for and this share will be hot tomorrow

Now a cert for a buyout in my view.

The low value of sterling will attract foreign interest.

Specifically, the American luxury department store Nordstrom is still for me the main potential buyer, but this is an interesting move by Ashley. There is certainly a recent trend of traditional bricks-and-mortar stores buying or building stakes in pure online players.

With results out and everything now out in the open, I think a move will happen very quickly.

Shorts now very exposed.

I think one of the next RNS we see will be a takeover move.

You assume this will be a friendly bid asking the board of directors? At this price it’ll be a direct swoop - rather than going through the B of D, it’ll be a hostile bid going directly to ASOS shareholders with the bid. It’ll be a quick tender offer, giving shareholders the opportunity to sell their stock to the acquirer at a substantial premium within a set timeframe. If that’s a tenner plus or £11 / £12 I think the bidder has a good chance right now

No doubt in my mind a bid will come in for Asos

https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/995171/asos-a-potential-bid-target-as-pound-slides-reckons-shore-capital-995171.html

What would happen if a bid came in the day before results? What is the precedent for this? Would the company have to declare and release all info early or could it all happen on the same day? Maybe a foreign buyer would jump in on results day or a day or two later, crazy that a US company can come in and get Asos so cheap for their dollar. Amazing

Looks like the Kardashian signing is paying off already
Huge press on this

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-11220289/Kourtney-Kardashian-Barker-hits-park-new-fast-selling-Boohoo-collaboration.html