Editor's Pick: The week ahead....
(HRO.L) H.R.Owen PLC Buy/Sell
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| Date/Time | Headline | Source |
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| 22-10-09 | AFX UK Focus |
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The Times FIRST WIMBLEDON, LATER THE WORLD, AS HMV UNVEILS ITS BOUTIQUE CINEMA HMV will open a three-screen cinema on the second floor of its Wimbledon store on Friday in a move designed to offset declining sales of CDs and stalled DVD growth. The boutique cinema plan was developed in partnership with Curzon, a small cinema chain, and will target the consumer wanting "a glass of wine with their film". The partners will share revenue created on the cinema floor, with the screens showing a mixture of Hollywood blockbusters and foreign art house movies.
PARAGON GEARS UP TO ACQUIRE LOANBOOKS FROM RIVALS LAID LOW
BY FINANCIAL CRISIS Paragon is planning to acquire loan books from financial institutions struggling in the financial crisis. According to chief executive Nigel Terrington, the Solihull-based lender to private landlords will consider businesses ranging from "tens of millions to hundreds of millions of pounds". CarVal, an American specialist investor, will help Paragon fund the larger acquisitions, while Paragon will also be able to stretch the size of its purchases if they come with financing from the seller.
TOUGH TIMES DRIVE DOWN HR OWEN LUXURY CAR SALES HR Owen confirmed on Wednesday that its sales were still falling, contrasting with an 11 per cent rise in new registration in the overall car market as a result of the car scrappage scheme. The luxury car brand dealer's chief executive, Nicolas Lancaster, said that sales for most brands were down by around 40 per cent on last year and that some brands were down further, adding that the business had started to pick up in recent weeks but it was too early to see whether the improvement could be sustained.
TEMPUS ARM Holdings (Offers good value) Home Retail Group (Pass)
Burford Capital (Hold for now)
NATIONAL EXPRESS SET TO DISAPPOINT The transport group National Express is expected to reveal disappointing figures for its third-quarter trading on Thursday, as the company faces a takeover bid from its contemporary Stagecoach. The senior management at National Express has misgivings about the ability of Stagecoach to secure the two billion pounds of debt that would be held by a combined company and is preparing for an attempt to raise 400 million pounds through a rights issue to help its own debt repayments.
REGENT INNS SURVIVES WITH PRE-PACK DEAL The bar owner Regent Inns has been placed in pre-pack administration by BDO Stoy Hayward after it failed to secure funding for a buy-out. 1,800 jobs were saved by the pre-pack option, but 186 were still lost at Regent's nine worst-performing sites. Other sites have been sold to Punch Taverns or a new company set up by the management of Regent called Intertain. The remaining sites will pass into the ownership of the company's creditors, which include Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and West LB.
ARGOS CATALOGUE PRICES UP BECAUSE OF WEAK POUND Home Retail Group is attempting to counterbalance the fall in the value of the pound by increasing prices in the Argos catalogue. The rise, believed to be four to five per cent by analysts, is also a reflection of the belief of Terry Duddy, the group's chief executive, that UK consumer confidence is returning. Pre-tax profits at Home Retail Group were 122.7 million pounds in the six months to August 29 - an increase on last year's figure of 121.4 million pounds.
QUESTOR Carillion (Buy) Pearson (Buy) The Independent BAA CUTS ITS DEBT PILE WITH SALE OF GATWICK FOR 1.5 BILLION POUNDS BAA has confirmed that it is to sell Gatwick Airport to Global Infrastructure Partners, a private equity firm that owns London's City airport. The 1.5 billion pound takeover set to be signed in December is likely to find favour with the Competition Commission, as BAA was ordered by the Commission to sell Gatwick, as well as Stansted and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airports, in March. BAA, which has a huge 9.6 billion pound debt, will use the proceeds to pay down a one billion pound bank facility that matures next year. PRIMARK PLANS 100,000 SQ FT STORE IN 675 MILLION POUND CARDIFF MALL Primark is in negotiations to sign up for a 10,000 sq ft outlet in St David's 2, a massive 675 million pound extension to Cardiff's existing shopping centre. The new centre is a joint development between Land Securities and Capital Shopping Centres, operating as the St David's Partnership. Primark, which is owned by Associated British Foods, would provide a massive boost to the centre by attracting not only customers but also new retailers.
KRAFT UNDER PRESSURE TO RAISE ITS OFFER AFTER CADBURY BEATS
TARGETS Andrew Bonfield, the finance director of Cadbury, which is a takeover target of US food giant Kraft, insisted it had a future as an independent confectionery business, after it upgraded its full-year financial results. In early September, Cadbury rejected a 10.2 billion pound proposed takeover offer by Kraft, which valued the UK-based group at 745 pence a share. According to Alicia Forry of Liberum Capital, the Cadbury's earning upgrades of at least 5 per cent to consensus underpin expectations that Kraft will have to bid above 800 pence. THE INVESTMENT COLUMN Drax (Buy) Home Retail Group (Hold) Telford Homes (Buy) The Guardian GATWICK AIRPORT TO GET UPGRADE AFTER 1.5 BILLION POUND SALE BAA has sold Gatwick to Global Infrastructure Partners, the investment group that controls London's City airport, in a 1.5 billion pound deal that ends BAA's four-decade long monopoly of London's major airports. Talks of modernisation at the 51-year-old site have raised fears of job losses among its 2,500 staff. Unite, the largest union in aviation, has called for a meeting with GIP to safeguard workers terms, conditions and pensions during the handover.
CADBURY IN FIGHTING MOOD AS SALES GO UP Andrew Bonfield, Cadbury's finance director, has warned that the group's unique corporate ethos would be lost if it were to be swallowed up by a larger multinational group such as Kraft, the US food conglomerate which is circling the business. On Wednesday, on the back of strong quarterly figures, Cadbury raised its sales and margin targets for this year, a move analysts suggested raised the pressure on Kraft to revise its recently spurned 10.2 billion pound cash and shares takeover approach.
HBOS CUSTOMERS COULD PAY 365 PER CENT OVERDRAFT FEE HBOS is to move all of its current account customers to a new daily charging structure, in a double blow that will see account holders face a hike in overdraft charges and the loss of interest when they are in credit. Agreed overdrafts of up to 2,500 pounds will be charged one pound a day, while those over 2,500 pounds will be charged two pounds a day. All debit and credit interest will be removed. The consumer body Which? has criticised the move.
Prepared for Reuters by Durrants
COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. More |
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| 22-10-09 | AFX UK Focus |
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The Times FIRST WIMBLEDON, LATER THE WORLD, AS HMV UNVEILS ITS BOUTIQUE CINEMA HMV will open a three-screen cinema on the second floor of its Wimbledon store on Friday in a move designed to offset declining sales of CDs and stalled DVD growth. The boutique cinema plan was developed in partnership with Curzon, a small cinema chain, and will target the consumer wanting "a glass of wine with their film". The partners will share revenue created on the cinema floor, with the screens showing a mixture of Hollywood blockbusters and foreign art house movies.
PARAGON GEARS UP TO ACQUIRE LOANBOOKS FROM RIVALS LAID LOW
BY FINANCIAL CRISIS Paragon is planning to acquire loan books from financial institutions struggling in the financial crisis. According to chief executive Nigel Terrington, the Solihull-based lender to private landlords will consider businesses ranging from "tens of millions to hundreds of millions of pounds". CarVal, an American specialist investor, will help Paragon fund the larger acquisitions, while Paragon will also be able to stretch the size of its purchases if they come with financing from the seller.
TOUGH TIMES DRIVE DOWN HR OWEN LUXURY CAR SALES HR Owen confirmed on Wednesday that its sales were still falling, contrasting with an 11 per cent rise in new registration in the overall car market as a result of the car scrappage scheme. The luxury car brand dealer's chief executive, Nicolas Lancaster, said that sales for most brands were down by around 40 per cent on last year and that some brands were down further, adding that the business had started to pick up in recent weeks but it was too early to see whether the improvement could be sustained.
TEMPUS ARM Holdings (Offers good value) Home Retail Group (Pass)
Burford Capital (Hold for now)
NATIONAL EXPRESS SET TO DISAPPOINT The transport group National Express is expected to reveal disappointing figures for its third-quarter trading on Thursday, as the company faces a takeover bid from its contemporary Stagecoach. The senior management at National Express has misgivings about the ability of Stagecoach to secure the two billion pounds of debt that would be held by a combined company and is preparing for an attempt to raise 400 million pounds through a rights issue to help its own debt repayments.
REGENT INNS SURVIVES WITH PRE-PACK DEAL The bar owner Regent Inns has been placed in pre-pack administration by BDO Stoy Hayward after it failed to secure funding for a buy-out. 1,800 jobs were saved by the pre-pack option, but 186 were still lost at Regent's nine worst-performing sites. Other sites have been sold to Punch Taverns or a new company set up by the management of Regent called Intertain. The remaining sites will pass into the ownership of the company's creditors, which include Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and West LB.
ARGOS CATALOGUE PRICES UP BECAUSE OF WEAK POUND Home Retail Group is attempting to counterbalance the fall in the value of the pound by increasing prices in the Argos catalogue. The rise, believed to be four to five per cent by analysts, is also a reflection of the belief of Terry Duddy, the group's chief executive, that UK consumer confidence is returning. Pre-tax profits at Home Retail Group were 122.7 million pounds in the six months to August 29 - an increase on last year's figure of 121.4 million pounds.
QUESTOR Carillion (Buy) Pearson (Buy) The Independent BAA CUTS ITS DEBT PILE WITH SALE OF GATWICK FOR 1.5 BILLION POUNDS BAA has confirmed that it is to sell Gatwick Airport to Global Infrastructure Partners, a private equity firm that owns London's City airport. The 1.5 billion pound takeover set to be signed in December is likely to find favour with the Competition Commission, as BAA was ordered by the Commission to sell Gatwick, as well as Stansted and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airports, in March. BAA, which has a huge 9.6 billion pound debt, will use the proceeds to pay down a one billion pound bank facility that matures next year. PRIMARK PLANS 100,000 SQ FT STORE IN 675 MILLION POUND CARDIFF MALL Primark is in negotiations to sign up for a 10,000 sq ft outlet in St David's 2, a massive 675 million pound extension to Cardiff's existing shopping centre. The new centre is a joint development between Land Securities and Capital Shopping Centres, operating as the St David's Partnership. Primark, which is owned by Associated British Foods, would provide a massive boost to the centre by attracting not only customers but also new retailers.
KRAFT UNDER PRESSURE TO RAISE ITS OFFER AFTER CADBURY BEATS
TARGETS Andrew Bonfield, the finance director of Cadbury, which is a takeover target of US food giant Kraft, insisted it had a future as an independent confectionery business, after it upgraded its full-year financial results. In early September, Cadbury rejected a 10.2 billion pound proposed takeover offer by Kraft, which valued the UK-based group at 745 pence a share. According to Alicia Forry of Liberum Capital, the Cadbury's earning upgrades of at least 5 per cent to consensus underpin expectations that Kraft will have to bid above 800 pence. COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. More |
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| 22-10-09 | AFX UK Focus |
|
|
The Times FIRST WIMBLEDON, LATER THE WORLD, AS HMV UNVEILS ITS BOUTIQUE CINEMA HMV will open a three-screen cinema on the second floor of its Wimbledon store on Friday in a move designed to offset declining sales of CDs and stalled DVD growth. The boutique cinema plan was developed in partnership with Curzon, a small cinema chain, and will target the consumer wanting "a glass of wine with their film". The partners will share revenue created on the cinema floor, with the screens showing a mixture of Hollywood blockbusters and foreign art house movies.
PARAGON GEARS UP TO ACQUIRE LOANBOOKS FROM RIVALS LAID LOW
BY FINANCIAL CRISIS Paragon is planning to acquire loan books from financial institutions struggling in the financial crisis. According to chief executive Nigel Terrington, the Solihull-based lender to private landlords will consider businesses ranging from "tens of millions to hundreds of millions of pounds". CarVal, an American specialist investor, will help Paragon fund the larger acquisitions, while Paragon will also be able to stretch the size of its purchases if they come with financing from the seller.
TOUGH TIMES DRIVE DOWN HR OWEN LUXURY CAR SALES HR Owen confirmed on Wednesday that its sales were still falling, contrasting with an 11 per cent rise in new registration in the overall car market as a result of the car scrappage scheme. The luxury car brand dealer's chief executive, Nicolas Lancaster, said that sales for most brands were down by around 40 per cent on last year and that some brands were down further, adding that the business had started to pick up in recent weeks but it was too early to see whether the improvement could be sustained.
TEMPUS ARM Holdings (Offers good value) Home Retail Group (Pass) Burford Capital (Hold for now) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. More |
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| 21-10-09 | PRN |
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This news article is displayed preformatted as it may contain results tables
21 October 2009 HR Owen Plc Interim Management Statement and Trading Update The Board of HR Owen Plc issues the following trading update. Market conditions in the previous two months since the announcement of our Interim Statement have remained very tough and the substantial rises in financial markets have not yet been reflected in the wider economic climate in the UK. Although new vehicle registrations in the important new registration plate month of September were 11% up on the comparable month in 2008, many of the Group's marques in the ultra-luxury sector continue to record falls compared to last year. Nevertheless, we are pleased to report that the Board remains satisfied that the Group's results at the trading level in the second half of the year will be no worse than those experienced in the first half of the year. However, the outlook for the remainder of the year remains difficult to predict. The Board recognises that significant challenges lie ahead but is confident that the Group's unique portfolio of luxury brands will provide a strong platform once economic conditions improve. For further information: Nicholas Lancaster, Chief Executive Mike Warren, Finance Director HR Owen Plc Tel: 020 7245 1122 END More |
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| 28-03-09 | ||||
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Looking at the sales for new and used cars for 2008, H R Owen have recorded total sales of 1158 units for the year 2008.
From memory i think that prior to the disposal of the Volvo sites, H R Owen operated from 7 locations. Therefore their total sales for new and used cars for 2008, was 3 cars per branch, per week. I know that the company is in the premium brand sector, ( but did also have Volvo at the time), however, these figures appear to be staggeringly low. I would personally doubt if there is a motor industry business model in the UK, with sales results like this. More | View thread (1) | Respond | Login to Vote up | Login to Vote down |
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| 12-02-08 | ||||
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Be interesting to see how HRO do in the first half of 08. I wonder if they are worth taking over right now.
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| 25-01-08 | ||||
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Why is there no reporting on the share building stakes in HR Owen by two overseas companies – Shelton Corporation and Balverona, an Australian car distributor headed by Neville Crichton?
I have been told that the “-ton” in Shelton is from the “-ton” in Crichton. Are they a concert party and should this be disclosed under the Takeover Code? More | View thread (2) | Respond | Login to Vote up | Login to Vote down |
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| 17-07-07 | ||||
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Interesting to see Trefick has just sold its c18% holding to Balverona, an Australian company which is primarily a motor vehicle wholesaling co in Australia industry. Any ideas on where this may lead??? Personally seems like an odd interest for a company 'wholesaling in Australia industry'. Here's hoping however .... Anyone got other ideas/views? Would be good to see the share price stop languishing at current levels.
"Balverona Pty Limited is a Proprietary company that is ranked number 390 out of the top 2000 companies in Australia. The company generates the majority of its income from the Motor Vehicle Wholesaling in Australia industry. For the 12 months to 6/2005 the company generated total revenue of $680,023,000 including sales and other revenue. In 2005 Balverona Pty Limited had 112 employees in Australia including employees from all subsidiaries under the company's control. The Chief Executive of Balverona is Mr Neville Crichton whose official title is Governing Director. Listed below is a general list of Balverona's direct and non-direct competitors. Direct and non-direct competitors ABB Australia Pty Limited AMP Limited BOC Limited Bridgestone Australia Ltd Caterpillar of Australia Pty Ltd CFS Gandel Retail Trust Commercial Motor Vehicles Pty Ltd Ford Motor Company of Australia Limited GM Holden Ltd GPT Group Heidelberg Graphic Equipment Limited Inchcape Motors Australia Limited Isuzu-General Motors Australia Limited Komatsu Australia Pty Limited Makita (Australia) Pty Limited MaxiTRANS Industries Limited Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited NSK Australia Pty Ltd Otis Elevator Company Pty Limited Repco Corporation Limited Robert Bosch (Australia) Pty Ltd SKF Australia Pty Ltd Stockland Toyota Motor Corporation Australia Limited Westfield Group" More | View thread (1) | Respond | Login to Vote up | Login to Vote down |
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