Has anyone compared what the Chairman of LRM Philip Crawford told institutions last year when raising £4m of new money with what he and his "refreshed" team have actually achieved ? Rocketing sales under his leadership, costs tightly controlled was the promise in May 2015 and it sounded good.

Loss before tax of £2.2m and sales up by only 10% despite being helped by a falling Pound doesn't sound quite so compelling. Latest broker note forecasts costs rising to over £30m this year which against last year's revenues of £23.7m sound rather concerning.

The reality is that there has been significant value destruction with a 30%+ share price drop since Crawford took over. Doing a highly dilutive £8m placing on Friday at a 3 year low for the shares locks in that value destruction for anyone not invited in to the placing and adds further to the picture. Moreover done through a cash box, a sleazy device which avoids the inconvenience of pre-emption rights and normal governance standards.

Annual Report shows that Crawford was paid £400k including a £70k bonus, while the incoming CEO Alastair Brown collected a bonus of £50k for 4 months' work. This while the company lost money and the dividend was eliminated. Who is this company run for now ? Doesn't seem to be run for shareholders.

Unlock the rest of this article with a 14 day trial

Already have an account?
Login here