Roddy10

I was just reading a FT article covering a recent UBS report suggesting that very few customers will switch if a bank closes down branches. The article is at https://ftalphaville.ft.com/20... The gist of the article is that branch networks are going to die and banks should go entirely online. I would like to take the liberty of discussing this in more depth on these august…

I have read a lot of material on various websites on Frontier. I thought I would put down my thoughts in the following. Of course do your own research and the following is not investment advice. The issue that has particular bemused me is that a lot of commentary seems to be based on 'it has gone up so it must go down' rather than…

Let me start with a question - which of the following will perform best:1. A careful selected portfolio of 20 stocks?OR2. A portfolio of 20 stocks that are chosen at random but with strict money management rules?I am a value orientated investor but I would suggest that the performance of portfolio 2 might surprise many people. A lot of modern investment management is focussed on…

Following are the opening paras from an article in the FT today: Nearly three decades ago, Warren Buffett penned an annual letter to his adoring investors mocking an insidious new trend beginning to make its mark in the money management industry: the computer. “In my opinion, investment success will not be produced by arcane formulas, computer programs or signals flashed by the price behaviour of…

I have been trying to decide my own views on Just Eat. What is striking is the contrast between it's Value ranking, and its Quality and Momentum rankings:Interestingly, looking singularly at V, Q and M (or even QM) for historic returns brings home the contrast in potential returns.In May 2014 the company joined the FTSE 250 - so one of the questions in my mind…

I am not a lawyer. I do have a number of years of professional experience in the City. The relevant rules are: 1. Criminal Justice Act 1993 2. Market Abuse Regulation (Regulation 596/2014) A useful starting point is https://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/8-107-6269?transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default)&firstPage=true&bhcp=1 In summary if you have information which relates to a specific security (or securities), it is specific and precise, and has not been made public but…

Jonesj - I both agree and disagree! I think it depends a little on age and what your requirements are. There have been years that I have not visited a bank branch at all. However to say that meant I did not need a branch would be disingenuous as my wife and / or my dad did visit branches on my behalf. Also when we…

Hi Richard: 1. Re local businesses needing less cash services - agree. I think that is a very valid - but the other part of that is that a local branch is often very useful to help recruit local businesses for credit card processing (ie merchant services acquisition). Sadly eg RBS sold off its credit card processing (Worldpay) at the wrong time in the cycle.…

I agree re the need to have various skillsets as a business grows. But a 'logistics expert' or a 'manager of controls' is rarely going to inspire a company or customers. An example of a leader who has, either directly or indirectly masters logistics, processes and controls is Jeff Bezos. Re branding and target customers - it may not be a bad thing to aim…

I like to split the capex into 'maintenance capex' and 'expansionary capex'. Roughly, for a company with short duration assets, the depreciation ought to be equivalent to the maintenance capex. So if I subtract that from the capex number it gives a rough idea of how much the company is investing in future growth. Obviously for longer duration assets one needs to make a guesstimate…