Member Info for Yesimabeliever

I am looking forward to Matthew Mouldings triumphant Xmas video this year. What will be? Kong beating up a bunch of investors and burning THG share certificates. Or perhaps Kong running off into the jungle with Ingenuity? I am sure Matthew would welcome any input from here.

Read TMT report by a corporate advisory business over the weekend highlighting the increasing PE activity in marketing services businesses enabled by AI. Monks is in the right space, and whilst recent trading update remained disappointing due to the drag of tech clients, still convinced that private equity and trade would ascribe

a much higher value to s4 than we care currently seeing on the LSE. Confident S4 has the right focus and talent to bounce back and deliver great returns in the medium term.

Fully agree openview

Personally I’m taking comfort from the fact that Kelso are still here, participated in the raise and haven’t bailed. They are in a similar position to us PI’s, albeit with access to the large holders that likely gives them some insight we don’t have.

Whilst they, like almost all holders are under water here, the time to judge the wisdom of their investment (and ours) is at the end game.

Caveat is there rock8, but when following on from missed guidance after missed guidance, it just compounds the lack of trust in MM. It is just unnecessarily sloppy IMO. give a date/timeline that you can beat and over deliver. Simple.

Whatever the language oohahh love to know what moulding is telling those in the know keep them onside

Sub par again from THG with the deadline come and gone.

Whatever the excuse, with THG’s shambolic history, and the demerger of such importance to the group and shareholders, it looks awful.

This on Lord Allen’s watch, he’s had zero impact at improving IR and he should be very embarrassed about this latest saga. A penny for his thoughts.

Large holders should also be demanding that MM sells the properties to an 3rd party as a requirement for any deal.

Interesting points you raise Okehurst. MM does not seem to have a strong hand any more. Withering support in II’s (QIA/Balderton), questionable performance (£1 billion plus spent on Ingenuity now taken private for £25m, nutrition decline). If I had £10’s of millions in this I would be taken my the opportunity to seize more control.

@oohahh my assumption is that JG would have to go with Ingenuity. He seems pretty integral to that operation.

Have pondered whether GLA might go in time post demerge and (hopeful) rerate, with MM up to Chair and a plc friendly CEO come on in…but then not sure any self respecting CEO would work under MM as chair

Matt did well for investors in THG was a private company for 15 years.

This is though, THG is a plc now, and you can't dine out on former glories forever.

The last few years have seen car crash after car crash.

As founder, Matt deserved a chance to try to recover things. I've been guilty of thinking he had the talent to navigate his way out of it in spite of the ill judged anti city rants.

Thing is though, 2024 was supposed to be the return to form, remember the video? Free cash flow positive and strategic moves.

Instead Matt has driven Myprotein into a brick wall and proposed a demerger that has halved the share price, Bad enough. But now he has missed is OWN timetable for the circular. Final nail in the coffin for me

Open your eyes guys. Moulding has to go. Remainco will always trade at a discount with MM in the chair because he does not see the importance of following through on commitments.

@oohahh You sound a little jaded with it all. Chin up.

Hopefully the circular (when we get it) will start to liven up the THG circus.

Got no faith it will be tomorrow though!

@kbyk 🤷‍♂️

Annoying as the paper losses are, I’m still hopeful the big holders will police this to a return for us and keep MM honest.

Yep @1pencil, overpromising seems to be in MM’s DNA.

I’m surprised NED BoD haven’t got a grip of this by now and yet here we are:

1) miss on nutrition

2) deadline (their own) missed on circular

Everybody should have learnt their lesson by now, as per previous comments feeds mistrust. It’s totally unacceptable

@kbyk, you are clearly more generous than me if you think we are still in “early” November. I’d say we are firmly in “mid” November. It just feels sloppy, which given THG’

Waiting we are…

BUT given the lack of confidence in MM/THG already,

it is absolutely unacceptable for the BoD to miss their own timetable for the circular. They’ve had 18 months to come up with this plan, plenty of time to do the groundwork, this circular should be out on time.

(Unless of course there is inbound interest in which case I take it back, but of course we all know it is most likely just late)

World class and overpromising and underdelivering. Latest example the circular, I would say we are now in “mid”

November.

Hopefully SMS will see sense here that limping on/cutting costs for another 12 months as a UK plc isn’t the optimal way forward for S4 shareholders, employees or clients.

Surely an opportunity here for US Private Equity to come in and invest, get M&A back on the table and tidy up the reporting/integration issues away from the prying eyes of public markets. Relist in US or sell to trade in 3-5 years. Hopefully with the US election out of the way this sort of opportunity may open up.

Agreed RN1MLT, and of course if Ingenuity went bust, your investment in Remainco is in big trouble as Ingenuity is the primary route to market.

Correct Fredster, you can be in Ingenuity if you want,

so it isn’t really being “nicked”. Given the pre £75m working capital equity valuation of £25m and dropping, I’ll be taking up my Ingenuity shares as a very cheap “option” on a £600m recurring revenue business.