Small Cap Value Report (27 Jan 2017) - LOOP, RTC, TET, UBI, CTO
Good morning!
It's a really busy day for me today, as I have an investor lunch at noon, then a 2pm meeting with MySale (LON:MYSL) (in which I hold a long position), which should be really interesting. I still haven't got round to reporting on the recent trading update from MYSL, so will aim to put together an article here over the weekend combining both the RNS and today's meeting. It's another of these internet retailers that is difficult to value, and now looks very expensive on conventional metrics.
LoopUp (LON:LOOP)
Share price: 173.5p (up 3.0% today)
No. shares: 40.8m
Market cap: £70.8m
(at the time of writing, I hold a long position in this share)
Capital markets day - skip this section if you're not interested in growth companies.
I promised to report back on a meeting which I attended on Weds this week, at LoopUp's Shoreditch office. This company caught my eye a few weekends ago, when I was familiarising myself with recent new floats. I narrowed it down to 2 interesting companies, FreeAgent Holdings (LON:FREE) and LoopUp (LON:LOOP) . So it didn't take that long to quickly read both their admission documents, and all the RNSs to date. I've read so many over the years, that it's easy to skim through them, identifying the important bits.
LoopUp offers an innovative conference call software. It's cloud based, and works tons better than conventional conference calling. Key features are;
- No training required - it's intuitive to set up & use.
- Instant setup - due to it being cloud-based. No complicated downloads or plugins. You're up & running very quickly & easily, in a completely automated process.
- Better control - the user sets up a conference call through Outlook or other calendar software. LoopUp then dials out, to bring in the attendees. A control panel shows exactly who is in the meeting, giving enhanced security. Background noise can be muted, and the control panel shows who is talking at all times.
- Screen-sharing allows collaboration, presentations, etc.
- Reliability - battle-proven software.
- Deliberately light on features - the overriding aim is to make it simple & intuitive to use.
The trouble with meeting management, is that if they're likeable (and I tend to like most people) then you can end up forgiving their mistakes,…
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LoopUp Group plc, formerly LoopUp Group Limited, is a software-as-a-service provider of remote meetings. The Company's product, LoopUp, is designed to eliminate frustrations associated with conference calls and deliver a remote meeting experience for mainstream business users. For hosts, the LoopUp meeting includes ability to create a meeting invite directly from Microsoft Outlook in over two clicks; a call start alert to their desktop and mobile/tablet devices as soon as their first invited guest joins the meeting; ability to identify who has the distracting background noise and mute their line, and ability to allow other guests to share their screen at the host's discretion. For guests, the LoopUp meeting includes clicking-to-join the meeting from a link in the invite, entering their name and phone number and LoopUp calls out to them. LoopUp plans include outlook integration, and one-click screen-sharing. Its data centers are located in London, Chicago, Hong Kong and Sydney. more »
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RTC Group plc is engaged in engineering and technical recruitment business. The Company focuses on white and blue collar recruitment providing temporary, permanent and contingent staff to a range of industries and clients in both domestic and international markets. The Company's segments include ATA, Global Staffing Solutions (GSS), Ganymede Solutions Limited (Ganymede) and The Derby Conference Centre Limited. ATA Recruitment Limited (ATA Recruitment) provides recruitment solutions to the engineering and technical sectors. It has two core operating units, which include projects and branches. Ganymede supplies labor into safety critical environments, and supplies and operates contingent labor within the rail industry. GSS is a staffing solutions and resource provider. GSS works with clients across the globe that are focused on delivering projects into a range of sectors, such as aerospace and defense, ports, mining, and oil and gas. more »
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Treatt PLC is a United Kingdom-based ingredients manufacturer and solutions provider to the flavor, fragrance and consumer goods markets. The Company's geographical segments include United Kingdom, Rest of Europe, The Americas and Rest of the World. The Company's products include Essential oils, Citrus, Treattarome, Functional ingredients, Chemicals, Organic essential oils, Vegetable oils and Treatt brew solutions. Its Essential oils include Amyris Oil, Angelica Oil and Aniseed Oil. Treattarome products include Pineapple Treattarome, Honey Treattarome and Cucumber Treattarome. Its Citrus products include citrus oils, CitrustT, TreattZest and Citrus add-back range. Its Functional ingredients include beverage specialties, fragrance ingredients and sugar reduction products. Its chemicals include aroma chemicals, natural chemicals and Treatt Flavour Wheel. Its Vegetable oils include Borage Oil and Baobab oil. Its organic essential oils include Organic Aniseed Oil and Organic Lime Oil. more »
LSE Price
56 Comments on this Article show/hide all
Hi Paul,
Thanks for report of Treatt (LON:TET) Long term holder here but topped up on news for plans for a new shed to bring together all the sites on which manufacturing is taking place. There may be a call for cash but I think not as they have bank loans lined up. I also think that the holding value of the freehold and long term lease of present sites might be worth more than the holding value of £5m. This was a family fiefdom but when Hugo got ousted he threw the toys out of the pram which damaged the sp and there are legacies with his purchase of organic earthoil which is probably being sorted. I look forward to any further thoughts.
600 (LON:SIXH) dropped an RNS late on Friday, sp up 25% as a result. Again long term holder in this one. P/E got down to 2.5 before this RNS. Market cap only £12m so may be below your radar.
Regards,
Seadoc
In reply to post #169123
Hi Woodcutter,
Well thanks for your input.
THIS: http://www.stockopedia.com/fantasy-funds/beam-me-up-scotty-4990/
Cheese, P.
In reply to post #169123
Woodcutter I am sure that Paul can fight his own battles but felt the need to respond. What a completely offensive, unpleasant and unnecessary comment. What made you feel the need to make it? But also if you feel this way why have your read his reports daily?
As to opinions, nobody has unbiased opinions. There is no such thing. All our opinions are shaped by our experiences and our prejudices. And in any event I want opinions, I want the bull and bear case, so that I can use them to shape my own opinion on a stock and then make an informed decision as to whether to buy or sell. Making this part of my process enabled me to be up 37% last year (not in Paul's league but a performance I am more than happy with) and that was starting the year with 41% of the portfolio in cash. This year to date I am up 6%.
I find Paul's AND Graham's insights invaluable and I for one will be greatly sadden when/if they throw in the towel because of comments like yours.
The only thing that I find surprising is that, as the column has had over 6,000 reads, your comment has only 13 thumbs down but that maybe down to the fact that the thumbs up/down buttons do not work on iPads/iPhones, so I for example, have to wait until Sunday evening to when I am back at my desk to give your comment a thumbs down and that you posted at 22:00 last night.
In reply to post #169132
Thanks Paul for your unstinting work in producing this column on a near daily basis. Please please don't let the ......... grind you down. I for one SO appreciate your columns.
Have a good weekend.
Echo purpleski comments Paul. Actually I find your style very entertaining ..... it can be quite dry when people just analyse stocks. But you let us know what you are feeling, thinking and buying ....and then admit there may be a contrary view. This provokes more conversation and more interesting exchanges.
People might not agree with your view - but that's fine. We all have to make our own decisions.
BTW great response to Woodcutter in post 39.
In reply to post #169123
Give the man a break Woodcutter. We all know why Paul tells us it's not a tip sheet - and it's not because he thinks were stupid.Paul's daily report is a good catalyst for discussion and disagreement at times, this board would be a lot poorer without it.
Paul has said in the past that you need a thick skin to do his job - very true. Is Paul always right, always consistent, always unbiased? None of those things but always worth reading.
The world is just a better place to live in if we treat each other with a bit of respect.
Bonitabeach
Paul,
you seem to have missed the best update that came from BXP, this has potential
Also good numbers from ULS but it's a management consultancy, so there maybe some banana skins around the corner
In reply to post #169156
You have missed reply #3.
In reply to post #169123
I don't think most people on here share your view, most will have benefited from Paul's reports, if you read them everyday and have not then that is down to you. As you can see Paul's fantasy fund is up over 100%. If you don't like his reports, don't read them.
In reply to post #169132
I have appreciated your "opinions" Paul, and have done well from heeding them. A big part of my desicsion to pay for Stockopedia membership is because I felt the responsibilty of not taking a free ride. But I am not stupid and understand you do not control companies fortunes or the forces that control the market in general. Every person has their own individual circumstances that they need to consider when making their investment choices. Even this week I have sold out of a position of a company you have high opinions of simply on the basis of my enter price... thats investing/ trading. You have experience and skill many of us dont have and all we ever expect is that you use those skills honestly in in your reports, which I have no reason to believe you don't. Unfortunately our society has become one of blame rather than resposibility, which is why we have inane warnings such as Stockopedias disclaimers or that a packet of cashews may contain nuts.
In reply to post #169123
Wood cutter - what a rancid post!
PP.
The post above from Woodcutter unfortunately violates our posting guidelines in being ad hominem and has been moderated - please keep the discussion focused on investing issues, rather than flaming other members. Any more off-topic posting will be removed and may lead to a site ban.
See: http://help.stockopedia.com/community-guide/posting-guidelines/moderation-rules
In reply to post #169123
woodcutter;
ffs do you think we're stupid
No. I think you're stupid. PP.
Well done to the moderators for acting there. What an illogical, ungracious & utterly pointless piece of criticism.
Keep up the good work Paul. Your articles are just about the best analysis there is. I learn from this and have made good money on some of the ideas.
In reply to post #169150
Hi Bonitabeach,
Thanks for your lovely, supportive post. Very much appreciated.
Can I just reinforce one point please? Our mantra here of DYOR is not some kind of disclaimer. It's what the whole thing is about. Let me be explicit - I do not want to recommend shares, or give buy/hold/sell ratings. It is possible to do that, because there is a journalists over-ride. However, to me, it is totally wrong. I think it is appalling that clueless journalists working for newspapers or magazines publish strident views, telling the readers what to do. That is totally wrong!
We should try to educate, and stimulate, and have a discussion about each share.
Anyway, if it stops being fun, then I'll pack it in.
EDIT: just to confirm, it IS still fun, so we'll keep going strong! The odd moaning minnie does upset me a bit, but there we go. I dish it out, so have to take it on the chin too.
Regards, Paul.
In reply to post #169165
herbie47,
Many thanks for your supportive comment, much appreciated.
As you say, if people don't appreciate my strident views and balance sheet analysis, then what the hell are they doing here? If you don't like it, don't read it. We've got a loyal & incredibly intelligent readership, numbering around 10k per day, which is a mixture of PIs and City folks.
The reader comments are just getting better & better. None of the background noise from rubbish websites, the reader comments here are class. As I've always said, investing is a team sport - there's always someone who knows a lot more than me about any company.
Best wishes, Paul.
Just to say that behind the scenes Lync and Skype for Business are now the same thing. It's just a matter of which interface the corporate IT dept. chooses to roll out.
https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Why-do-I-see-Skype-for-Business-when-I-m-using-Lync-50935112-4978-46b8-b2ad-9dd7b81365bf
The Purplebricks (LON:PURP) share price has risen sharply recently which is good for those of us that hold. I just read an amusing post on the FT Alphaville blog with the title "When the RNS hand knows not what the Twitter hand doest"
They put out an RNS saying they knew no reason for the sharp increase in their share price and that the board's expectations remain unchanged. At the same time they tweeted that January was a record month for valuations and instructions!
https://ftalphaville.ft.com/2017/01/27/2183351/when-the-rns-hand-knows-not-what-the-twitter-hand-doest/
If anyone is near a news agent. There is a short company profile on LoopUp (LON:LOOP) in PCPro this month.
The article does explain some of the technical differences over other similar packages and why the company developed it.
I will try and scan it and post it at a later date.
Cheers
PaulB