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jtd - all this premature talk of further corporate action clearly prompted us both to respond at the same time, and in similar ways.

The shares only started trading on 13/10/20. It is now 20/10/20, just 5 and a bit days later!

One short week into a period of 12-18 months over which the company has the opportunity, courtesy of Sir R and the capital raise, to turn itself around.

A week during which markets generally have been weak due to the ongoing unprecedented uncertainties this year (though it seems longer than a week if you are glued to the screen, impatient for a recovery in the SP).

A week of low share turnover when just a tiny bit of concerted selling by institutions like SLA will have a disproportionate negative effect on the SP.

A week during which the BOD has been focused on the business and on getting the company cruising again, and not on the SP and its wild daily fluctuations.

A week which has admittedly tested the nerves of investors, but like the BOD, we need to remain calm and focused: the company is secure for at least 12-18 months, and daily SP gyrations will not alter that fact.

And it’s no time to be talking about ulterior motives, Plan B’s, taking the company private etc.

KEEP CALM, & TOP UP (as I have done).

Saga cheerfully advertising cruises on LBC his morning. Could get the official go-ahead for cruising at any moment.

Just topped up at 119.8p - for the last time.

I'm sure it's the same contract, but I don't see the article as a deliberately misleading repetition, because it is addressed to a totally different audience. The RNS was for investors, the news section of the website is for potential clients etc.

If it has only recently been posted on the website though, I'm not sure why it has taken so long.

So it was Gatemore selling 25m-odd shares last week to an, as yet, unknown buyer(s), off-market probably. They're still the largest shareholder though, at over 30%.

Sorry about the double post. First one didn't show up at first, so just retyped it from memory. Site should allow edit/delete of posts.

Typical Motley Fool. If you say something is 50/50, you can't be completely wrong whatever happens!

Typical Motley Fool. If you say something is 50/50, you can't be wrong whatever the outcome!

Slownsteady, Sir R already has.

It's good to see Saga getting a mention, and being proactive.

Thanks, guys.
Batfasted – interesting point about SLA. They did indeed sell a load (a massive 4.3% of the issued shares of the company), but “way back” (it seems an age ago!) on 1/10/20, so before the share consolidation. I suppose such an exceptional sell could well be feeding through still in some way, and having a drag on the SP?
toneman - I hope I’m right too! This will be a rollercoaster, I’m sure, but trending upwards over the months ahead, so you should do ok!
zccax – as you say, it’s not a Travel stock – except when the Travel sector is on a downer, when it gets tarred with the same brush without a second thought! Basically, Saga is unloved (this could be something to do with losing over 95% of its value since flotation!), and the market will use any excuse to mark it down I’m afraid. Could this be about to change…?
Banburyboy – there’s an awful lot in the Prospectus which I hadn’t previously appreciated. For example, I learnt that Sir Roger will have a major formal input into the strategy of the company through a seat on a new “Strategic Forum” which is being set up to discuss the strategic direction of the company, initially meeting monthly. So he’ll be hitting the ground running, and no mere "non-executive". Watch this space!

Thanks sharefall. As you say it’s “pretty much financially secure medium term” - as a direct result of the capital raise.

So why the SP is not higher now than before the capital raise is a mystery - but also an opportunity.

toneman – if this were true, it would be very bad news, because it would take months to clear the overhang based on the relatively low daily share turnover this week.

However, having re-read the Prospectus this morning (sad, I know), it is not true to say “underwriters still offloading”, because the underwriters weren’t left with any shares in the first place!

It is the “conditional placees” - and not the underwriters JPM, Numis and HSBC - who now have more shares than they probably expected, as a result of the low take up by the general body of shareholders.

However, the conditional placees are existing shareholders and other institutional investors, ie serious long-term shareholders (one of whom is Sir Roger), who have been left with shares which they were happy to take. Certainly none (except Sir Roger of course) has ended up with more than 3%, because we’d know by now via RNS.

So I think the selling pressure this week has been instigated by the widespread misplaced belief that heavy selling by the underwriters would drive down the SP, and I feel optimistic therefore that the selling pressure is over, and certainly I cannot see the SP being driven down inexorably to £1 or less as some posters think. It is already ridiculously low - I topped up at 130p by the way - for a company which now has enough cash to last it well over a year, based on the very worst trading and Covid-19 assumptions.

And don’t forget, as each day goes by, we are a day closer to a breakthrough regarding safe cruising, be that through a vaccine, new drugs, enhanced testing, enhanced onboard protocols, or otherwise.

Why engage with the “disruptive posters”, or even bother to read their posts? I don’t.

It's not just Saga, it's the whole insurance industry ripping off loyal customers.

According to the Prospectus, as a result of the capital raising, they have sufficient working capital for at least the next 12 months. 30 months out is when £190m of loans mature.

Sir R's involvement is obviously a good thing for Saga, and I hope he makes a difference, but don't forget he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth - it was his father who set up the company 70 years ago.

Also £100m is money he can afford to lose - the £900m he's left with should just about see him out!

On the positive side, he is a Tory donor, so time to call in a favour?

Assuming they've made an offer.

If it would clear the ship loans, maybe. It's a big "if" at the moment though. I mean, would you pay top dollar for a cruise ship right now?

AA's SP is obviously being affected by general market weakness today.

But I wonder if this will encourage the PEs to now make a cheeky lowball offer, such as the 35p I've been bracing myself for?

This would still give a fantastic return for those buying today.