Good morning everyone!

There are some interesting releases for me to look at today. This list is final:



H & T (LON:HAT)

  • Share price: 341p (unch.)
  • No. of shares: 39.7 million
  • Market cap: £135 million

Unaudited Interim Condensed Financial Statements

(I have a long position in HAT.)

These are a good set of results and I've marginally increased my position size in H&T as a result. It was already a core position for me, and is now 9% of my portfolio.

Note that these results are before the acquisition of 65 stores from The Money Shop, including their pledge books.

The total store estate has therefore jumped sharply from 183 to 248, but we can't see it in today's numbers.

Indeed, the company recognised £0.5 million of transaction expenses so The Money Shop deal has had a negative effect on these interim results.

Without those transaction expenses, PBT would have increased by 16% to £7.3 million. This is in line with the 16% increase in "operating profit before non-recurring expenses", as reported by H&T.

Another factor which I would emphasise is that these results are on the back of an average gold price during the period of £1,010 per troy ounce. The latest gold price per troy ounce is £1,260.

For a long time, these shares have been a vehicle for me to express my goldbug instincts. There's a big part of me that wishes it was an even bigger part of my portfolio, as I do think that the prospects for gold are extremely bright, and I feel like I can analyse the prospects of a pawnbroker (by contrast, I have very little experience in the mining sector).

The other very nice thing about this share has always been my positive impression of the CEO and the culture of the company. To put it simply, I think that it treats its customers fairly and is focused on developing…

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