Member Info for TalygarnTom

Mon, 12 Feb 2018, 05:30pm GMT Interim CEO Peter Geleta speaks about the challenges the company has faced in the last financial year and the plans for the new year https://www.brrmedia.co.uk/br.oadcasts/5a818c2bcb5fd9447f49dce1/acacia-mining-2017-final-results

That's bad news. I think there is an issue here because I also noticed that the Koovs brand was never listed on the sub menu at the side.

thorpyuk - the point you make is a good one however, my understanding is that they are not selling each item at a loss but are having to order large minimums, in most cases much more than they can sell at full price. This means that they are having to write down a lot of end of season product which is then reflected as an overall gross margin loss. Obviously, were they to achieve higher sales volume the assumption would be that the overall write down would be reduced and margin improved.

https://www.sharesmagazine.co.uk/news/shares/why-talktalk-has-had-125m-swiped-off-its-market-value-today

In hindsight now the simple truth is the Lord Waheed Ali is not nearly as talented as he would like to think he is. He got lucky with ASOS and completely overestimated his ability to deliver at KOOVS.

I agree with oldtimer, you are 100% correct. This is not a few private investors selling. It's absolutely disgraceful and should be investigated.

Has anyone else noticed that the RM2 twitter feed has not posted a single message in January. This has a pre-pack administration written all over it with a new private company being formed.

I think you meant hindsight!

Small note in the monthly Woodford Patient Capital report about RM2. Given the share register includes significant capital investors in Woodford Investment Management and Invesco and given that there is not any significant debt on the balance sheet, it may not quite be the end of the road. However, situation is extremely precarious for PI's. https://woodfordfunds.com/words/insights/wpct-december-2017/ "RM2 International The company announced in December that it had been unsuccessful in securing funding for the year ahead. RM2 has had its fair share of challenges in recent years and in many respects, it epitomises how difficult it can be for early-stage businesses to develop and scale-up. We continue to see value in the disruptive pallet technology that RM2 International has been progressing towards commercialisation, overcoming many production challenges and enhancing the product offering along the way. The position is now small in the context of the patient capital portfolio but we will continue to work with the company to find an appropriate solution for its capital requirements and to give it the best chance of fulfilling its potential."

Recent commentary by Paul Scott one of the most astute small cap commentators around IMO. My opinion - the business model at Koovs has been all wrong since the start. The central overheads are far too large, sales are too small (and not even growing any more), gross margin is nil. Plus there's very little cash left. It might survive, if funders are prepared to throw more money at it. The existing equity is worth nothing though, on any rational basis. In my experience, successful eCommerce businesses tend to start small, operate on a shoestring by a driven founder CEO, and keep costs low as they grow. Then after a few years, growth becomes self-funding, and accelerates. Koovs has tried to put the cart before the horse - escalating its central overhead far too high, before it's generated any decent sales momentum. The worst mistake was under-funding the start-up. If you're going to really go for it, in terms of growth & heavy start-up costs, then the cash required for 3+ years' cash burn needs to be raised up-front, plus a contingency reserve. Koovs has been struggling for cash since 2015, and its repeated funding rounds, are looking increasingly desperate. Maybe it's time to just admit defeat, and let it fail? Or slash costs to the bone, and try again as a leaner, fitter business?

Recent commentary by Paul Scott one of the most astute small cap commentators around IMO. Share price: 16.25p (down 39.8% today, at 09:13) No. shares: 175.4m Market cap: �28.5m Interim results Koovs plc (AIM: KOOV), ("Koovs" or the "Company") the fashion-forward business focused on the young Indian e-commerce market, today announces its interim results for the six months to 30 September 2017. These figures are absolutely dire. To clarify that, the figures are always dire from Koovs, but the one saving grace in the past has been rapid revenue growth. The stock market will often give rapidly growing companies the benefit of the doubt over losses & cash burn, if top line growth is soaring. What's so shocking about today's results from Koovs, is that revenue growth has completely stopped. Here are a few numbers for H1; Revenue �3.9m, down 1.1% on H1 PY (remember that this is meant to be a rapid growth stock) Gross profit minus �12k - so they're basically selling clothes for the cost of manufacture Overheads �7.7m Operating loss �7.7m (remember these are just 6 months figures) Looking at the balance sheet, there is cash of �5.6m, plus bank deposits of �3.7m, so the company probably has enough cash to last until spring 2018 by my reckoning. Receivables looks very high, at �7.6m - that's almost a year's revenues sitting in receivables. Seems odd. There is also "loans & borrowings" of �6.9m, so the net cash figure is minimal. This �6.9m is the convertible (at 40p) 6% loan notes. The narrative is just delusional nonsense, so best ignored. Businesses that don't have a viable business model always try to sprinkle glitter over things by steering investors towards meaningless KPIs. Outlook comments - clearly not good, as there's not enough cash to drive growth through marketing. Note also that "sales" here are not the same as "revenues"; With modest additional marketing spend, the important month of November delivered a significant year on year improvement across key metrics, with Sales up by 17% to 1.7m and website traffic up 43%. However, marketing expenditure is currently significantly down due to the ongoing funding requirements of the Group, which the Company expects to affect FY18 sales overall. Additional marketing expenditure is conditional upon the timing of closure of the funding programme announced in July 2017, which the Company continues to expect to close shortly. It's stating the obvious, but a funding round from July which hasn't closed by December, suggests that funders are not too keen to inject more cash. Why would they, since that cash is already earmarked for total destruction. My opinion - the business model at Koovs has been all wrong since the start. The central overheads are far too large, sales are too small (and not even growing any more), gross

Interesting article on Bloomberg regarding the forthcoming changes to the the bunker fuel regulations. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-21/greek-shipper-bets-1-billion-on-fuel-rule-upending-world-trade?cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&utm_content=business&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Given that QFI is a listed company it can be bought if the potential buyer can agree to acquire the majority of the shares, normally around 75%. Ordinarily the buyer will try to bring on board the largest shareholders with a potential offer. The company does not have to be sold at a premium to the price listed and the shareholders can accept any offer at any price even if the Directors of the company, who may not be the largest shareholders, do not recommend the offer. However, in most cases the major shareholders will only agree to sell at a premium to the current share price so it can lead to a spike in the price. As a minority shareholder you can be forced to sell those shares even if it means that you have to sell at a loss. Should an offer be made this would normally be communicated to you and you would be asked if you wish to accept or decline the offer.

maths, That is a very good question and I think the key to how these shares will perform. My understanding is that there are two principal reasons. Firstly, they have adopted a very aggressive pricing policy to help to drive the rapid sales growth and secondly, they are having to commit to larger minimum quantities from their suppliers, possibly to achieve lower prices. This is creating excess stock at the end of season which is then being cleared below cost. TT.

cont.... Kosovo�s prospective EU accession, Fox Marble dispels most of the fears normally associated with such early stage producers. If there has been a problem, however, it is that access to this giant, but overwhelmingly fragmented market, depends on reputation, foremost with international distributors and established wholesale buyers, who remain the key �door openers�. Achieve that, become a default supplier of choice for, say, half an acre of flawless Argento Grigio for a new corporate headquarters in Dubai, then Fox Marble�s quarries could become very profitable indeed. Clearly such foundations are now being built; repeat orders along with the new arrangement with Pristine Stone should ensure the starting point for 2018E revenues is something over �6m, with scope to more than double this the following year. Significant operational gearing will ensure gross margins make a step improvement. While the 2017E should be expected to remain in net losses, there is finally reasonable confidence that next year could actually produce modest net earnings for the first time. Hurrah!! The recent issue of an 8% CLN will remind investors that Fox still has a relatively weak balance sheet but there are nevertheless tangible signs that the Group�s extended run of bad luck might finally have run its course. Beaufort now has confidence that Fox Marble will deliver on its promises and so repeats its �Speculative Buy�, with a price target of 12p/share. We have a Speculative Buy recommendation.

Fox Marble (FOX.L 8.75p) � Speculative Buy The AIM listed company focused on marble quarrying and finishing in Kosovo and the Balkans region, yesterday announced that it has completed its first sale of polished marble slabs from its newly operational factory in Lipjan, Kosovo. The material was purchased by Marble Dino Sh.p.k. a division of a large, local construction company in Kosovo. As announced on the 29 June 2016, the Group signed an agreement with Marble Dino for the supply of �1,500,000 worth of resined and polished marble over a twelve-month period from the date the factory became operational. Marble Dino is a trader of marble and other commodities and is involved in the purchase, shipping and resale of the material in the Kosovo and the Balkans. The first consignment, of just over 13 tonnes of polished slabs of Bianco Illirico and Illirico Selene material, was collected from the factory site on the 24 October 2017. The Company expects to continue delivering marble against the agreement over the remainder of 2017 and the 2018 financial years. A short video showing the operation of the polishing line is available on its website at https://www.foxmarble.net/photos-and-videos/ Our view: More evidence that Fox�s revenues are set to increase sharply in coming years. Multiple order from multiple territories are now being quarried and/or undergoing value-added processing in its marble factory for both local and international delivery. The critical factor, of course, is conversion of the order book into sales and cashflow. Management has already advised shareholders to expects sales of around �2.0m for financial year 2017 (FY 2016: �801,040), but clearly, deals more recently struck with Marble Dino, OM Enterprises, Pristine Stone, etc. not only provide a springboard for much higher sustained activity from 2018E, but also provide a big �tick� of credibility for Fox�s offering as a good proxy for the highest quality Italian stone. With the Group�s multiple �teething� problems now dealt with, its state-of-the-art factory now has the capacity to produce up to 440,000 square metres per annum of cut and polished slabs; it also has stockpiled a large number of blocks, which can be cut and processed during planned quarry winter shutdown to fulfil orders for processed marble. The Group�s business model is based around a largely fixed cost operation, meaning higher activity levels will drop significantly to the bottom line. Indeed, Beaufort has long held confidence in Fox�s exceptional high grade, multiple type/colour dimensional stone (found on surface while remaining open at depth) effectively provides it with infinite resource to supply to a growing US$10bn+ global market. Positioning itself as a low-cost, high-quality wholesale supplier of choice with elementary open pit workings, low cost labour and excellent infrastructure against a backdrop of Kosovo&#

This is very strange. As of today the market cap is �180.6m of which just 5 shareholders account for circa �151m. So one or more of them must be selling, however, I don't recall having seen a single RNS. Woodford Investment Management LLP �48,013,852 Invesco Limite �46,995,039 IP Group Plc �33,283,123 Entrepreneurs Fund General Partner Limited �15,435,724 Baillie Gifford & Co �8,086,716

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/185573/talktalk-slumps-after-barclays-downgrades-to-equal-weight-on-valuation-grounds

A couple of large sells before the market opened, possibly as a result of a baffling broker note from Barclays which reduced the rating but upped the target price. "TalkTalk PLC (LON:TALK) was the top FTSE 250 faller in early morning trading, dropping 6% to 204.9p as broker Barclays Capital cut its stance on the telecoms and broadband provider to �equal-weight� from �overweight� despite raising its target price to 215p from 185p".

You might want to read this. It outlines the competitive pressure in the airline market and explains the possible reasons why management make the decisions that they do. http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/aer-lingus-warns-it-faces-turbulent-times-as-lowcost-norwegian-and-ryanair-threaten-its-market-share-35957841.html