Member Info for sunshinedesserts

NasCan/ chpmpg

Indeed! I like the way you're thinking. That's completely changed the way I was looking at this - thank you guys!

Buying a basket of blue chips - with a "premium" asset management boutique with a decent, if declining, yield thrown in for free :-)

In fact, whats not to like? Lets hope some PE wants it.

Or I just sit on a blue chip portfolio and collect the div (recognizing it will likely get smaller).

PS I also hold LTI - will keep that in the hopes that a bid comes from somewhere and L&T decide to sell up! They must be pretty bored with being beaten up by the press for the last 5 years or so.

But I guess 8.5M a year dividends helps salve that pain.

I love the idea of this trust. But I think Mr T is is panicky.

And now the Board opt to charge capital with a manufactured dividend yield! Ugh!

Together with a 70M loan to buy into more of the same tech.

This smacks of the last gasp.

I know just how destructive this manufactured yield is in a falling market (I own JPMorgan China - 60% value destruction!).

Add a load of gearing...no thanks.

Its a 50/50 gamble - brilliant if hes lucky - very painful if hes not.

But maybe the retail investors will be enthused by the recent 24% uptick in "income" and ramp the price a little - so just a question of waiting to see if the discount (7%) narrows over the next few months to get me out even.

Thoughts?

Here's hoping Trump's visit can lead to a revival for this. Although HK market down today so far...

In at DBS Singapore

Ok - not what Id planned for , but s*d it. Im out and back into SMT.

What a palaver, Chatmandu. I guess they are right when they say never trust the Septics - as others will attest to.

Given the first tender offer has now failed, Im tempted just to sell in the market and get out now.

Where to invest the proceeds?

I broadly agree with you. I guess I will top up my SMT holding with the proceeds. Was considering MNTS rather than SMT which has higher %age of unlisteds.

But AIC is showing Premium c2% for SMT and c10% MNTS - not that that should be our main guide for investing - but +10% is a bit rich for me.

Seraphim also at +25% premium.

So not much choice it seems to me - SMT only viable one? - unless you want to be part of a new vulture fund.

Maybe too soon, but snagged a few at 529.6, and will look to add more as Israeli_US_w@r of aggression on Iran wanes

For those who dont recall the mess that Wanless got NW into last time - here's and old BBC link that explains what happened.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/626198.stm

Im a holder, so hope its different - but cant help feeling uneasy however.

Have just added a few though.

HSBA or NWG? Which would you choose? I hold both. But have some extra cash i want to bung in. or just do 50/50 :-)

Using the LSEG graphing tool i compared the two - they are broadly neck and neck depending on different time periods. Though NWG has had the better run over the last year or so.

Thoughts?

I live in a communist country - have done for the past 25 years. it works pretty well. Safe and secure, low crime, awesome infrastructure (roads, rail, ferry), nice people. Id recommend it.

@Liverpoolgent

Thanks for the input. I totally agree with you on China.

And like you Im pretty long China, and for a long time.

Lived there for many years too, so perhaps have a different perspective on China than many do.

I own both FCSS and JCGI, to hedge my bets - but getting jaded with JCGI. Still, it has perked up a little recently. So I think you are right - more patience required.

HK market also a bit more visible these days with IPO fever, which is, perhaps, both a blessing and a curse. I tried a few, but the allocations were so small for modest punters like me, that it wasnt worth the bother, notwithstanding some of the Day-1 profit percentages can be pretty significant, and still very tempting.

Here's hoping this builds more momentum in 2026!

Thanks again

I dont know, but i think im about to give up on this crew.

Maybe switch whats left from their value destruction and reinvest in FCSS which seems to be navigating China better.

I also dont like JPM taking income from capital.

Whats the thinking out there? Liverpoolgent, any thoughts??

Exactly right.

Sure, different businesses (Amazon - global, Baba - largely China) but scale is off the charts:

"Amazon c 310M global active users, with ~80% in the US, while Alibaba over 1.3B

annual active consumers across its platforms (Taobao, Tmall, AliExpress), and core Taobao/Tmall reach 800M+ monthly users"

And then, of course, its Cloud business.

Like you, I believe theres a lot more to go - a re-rating would be nice!.

...or opportunities! Personally, not sure I want to be merged with BG USA.

Id recommend checking out DeepSeek (yes, I know its Jaihneeez, but its all the better for that!). Its 'free' (except of course you will be training it :-) )

Its language skills are absolutely phenomenal.

You can upload your portfolio with tickers (in any format/spreadsheet you want) and it is uncanny how much it knows and understands. It will analyze and recommend and you can tell it to recalculate on whatever scenario you choose. Its quite remarkable.

Yes, I know some will worry that the CCP now know what I own, but frankly I dont think they are remotely interested. Besides, having lived there for 25yrs+ Im sure they have a pretty good idea anyway.

Give it a try. I think you will be pleasantly surprised how helpful it is, and how easy it is to chat to.

or should it be ‘phat’?

sometimes i can only shake my head in disbelief.

“what we’re seeing in the wider luxury market, outside of spirits, is a slowdown. however, what is in growth is experiences in luxury. people are really upgrading towards luxury experiences.

one of the areas that we’re starting to do a lot of exciting work in is what we call ‘experience-led luxury spirits’. that could be an out-and-out experience, fine dining, socialising, or it could be the experience that you get when you open the bottle of one of our spirits. experience is a really big fat word but it allows us to span the areas that people can and want to access spirits – from a great mini-martini all the way up to a bespoke blend created just for you. experience-led and the growth of luxury experience outside of spirits is a huge area of opportunity for us.”

“… there are many ways we can use experience as an important trend in order to make sure our spirits are at the front of mind of consumers. that is from an incredible ****tail drinks experience, all way through to ‘i have a seamless experience when i buy spirits online, or when i buy them as a gift’ and ‘i know that they’re going to turn up looking beautiful,’ all the way up to hosting people at our brand homes. over and above that, hosting clients all around the world and giving them one-off experiences. at the very top end, it could be at the brand home.

dave, mate, candidate for up against the wall??

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/luxury-spirits-rebound-diageo-faith-120411731.html

I trust the bean-counter ( or not a bean-counter depending on who you believe) that presided over this first class accounting soup is never employed again - unless as a dish-washer

I recall someone on here, 18 months or so ago, saying they'll wait until GBP16. At the time it didnt seem likely to me - but hey, there you go. Kudos to them, more fool me.

As you say - needs a big hitter CEO to take this by the horns.....!

What a shambles - maybe time to get out - licking my wounds!

Yes I too was wondering... if we collectively drown our sorrows in their premium brands...we can give the SP an uplift?