gretel
07 Dec 2017
CTO win Dyson campus work Another big contract win for the South West division yesterday - the huge new Dyson campus in Wiltshire:[link] South West secures M&E package for Dyson’s new global Tech CampusPosted: 06th December 2017 Earlier in the year, the national press ran a major story on British engineering giant Dyson’s plans to open a vast new global Tech Campus in Wiltshire on a former MOD site, and double its workforce to around 7,000 in the next five to six years. Now TClarke South West is able to announce that it has secured the M&E package for the first phase of this project with Main Contractor, Kier.TClarke South West MD Rob Faro is delighted with the win:“We are always delighted to win major projects in the region where they fit with our targeted tendering and relationship based approach in partnership with main contractors such as Kier. These projects are critical in spreading the TClarke name as we build our operation across the South West.”“But I must admit to a special pleasure in being associated with another British engineering firm - one who doubtless has an enormous public reputation - but which certainly shares our commitment to quality work, innovation and real jobs in British engineering.“As well as providing a facility for research on robotics, battery cells, vision systems, machine learning, and AI, the sheer scale of the 517 acre Hullavington site means that manufacturing could be done there if the company wanted. All in all, it promises to be a wonderful job in which to be involved.”
gretel
04 Dec 2017
Good news today The m/cap is now £30m, yet CTO is - forecast to have £9m cash at 31st December- will make £6.5M PBT, i.e 12.1p EPS this year against a 72p share price- rising to £11.3m cash, £7m PBT and 13.2p EPS next yearIt's extremely cheap imho.Here's today's news:"[link] West starts on site at Plymouth’s new centrepiece arts centrePosted: 04th December 2017It is full steam ahead as TClarke go onsite at Plymouth’s new £34m history centre - ‘The Box’. The new venue, which holds the city’s historical archive and artefacts, will bring some fantastic old buildings back into life, in a 21st Century venue which can become the heart for the city going forward.TClarke has the full MEP package for the project in partnership with Willmott Dixon as South West MD Rob Faro says:'This outstanding job is making headlines in the region. It will be central to the 2020 Mayflower celebrations (in which the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the ‘Pilgrim Fathers’ in America is commemorated). It is a high profile project and we are absolutely delighted to have been selected.‘It is another practical example of the effectiveness of our work over the last few years in targeting, winning and delivering high quality, high value projects, in partnership with quality main contractors such as Willmott Dixon, that build the TClarke brand across the region.‘Just a few years ago, TClarke in the South West was essentially a local company based in Cornwall and serving a local client base. Now we are in 3 locations across the region and delivering projects of this calibre.’"
addmaster123
25 Nov 2017
Recent Update Sometimes lowly rated shares remain stubbornly lowly rated, and this seems a case in point. I'm not a great fan of companies buying their own shares, but at this level perhaps the Board should consider it. They have the authority to purchase up to ten percent. It would improve earnings per share, and mop up stock from what appears to be a persistent seller.
schwee
17 Nov 2017
Re: Terrific trading update today But CTO is not making PBT of £6.5m, but some undisclosed lower figure because of so called exceptional items that in reality are in the ordinary course of business. No differnet to many other companies of course, but Mr Market is not fooled.
pearlsasinger
17 Nov 2017
Re: Terrific trading update today/Singer Thank you Gretel.Incidentally-- how do I access N+I Singer,s analysis?
gretel
17 Nov 2017
Re: Terrific trading update today N+1 Singer have retained their forecasts of 12.1p EPS for the year about to end, and 13.2p EPS for the coming year.They see the £9m cash pile rising to £11.3m by the end of next year.Hopefully the volumes resulting from today's excellent update will be enough to get rid of the seller - this may have happened already given the bounce from the low earlier this morning.
gretel
17 Nov 2017
Terrific trading update today A terrific update considering the share price gyrations:[link] Nicely in line, £9m net cash, looking for more acquisitions, a terrific order book and high revenue visibility. Plus a second RNS with an impressive NED appointment emphasising CTO's transition to a digital future (emphasised by the new contract wins in both M&E).Extremely reassuring. CTO will have made £6.5m PBT and will have £9m cash - against a mere £30m m/cap. Which says it all.
pearlsasinger
16 Nov 2017
Trading Update tomorrow It will be interesting to seea)will it be positiveb) will it be sufficient to reverse the recent s p weakness.
Blanketstacker
08 Nov 2017
Re: pension defecit/ The management here are interesting. and large management are from the trades, so they know how jobs should be done, what they cost, and how to get the best from the workforce. However, as you rightly say, they may be less competent when it comes to the mergers and acquisitions markets. They probably need to get a suit and a beancounter up the system.
schwee
08 Nov 2017
Re: pension defecit/ It is less the pension deficit, more the management credibility that is the issue. Nasties keep crawling out of the woodwork: last year an internal fraud, this year inexplicable losses in one of the regions. All seems to suggest a lack of robust systems and oversight.And now an acquisition, despite having been badly burnt previously. And there is the general point of acquisitions destroying value for the acquirer in 80% of cases. This one will hopefully be in the 20% that succeed, but potential and some actual shareholders in CTO are not going to take that risk as they are well aware of the odds. Hence the drift in the share price.
Blanketstacker
07 Nov 2017
Re: pension defecit/ The pension deficit is massive, but it seems to me that may be in the price here. Previous takeovers have been problematic, so let's keep our fingers crossed!
pearlsasinger
06 Nov 2017
pension defecit/ Could this be the reason for the lacklustre share price?(There seems to be a ready supply of sellers)The market cap of CTO is £32m.At £22.3 the deficit appears to be material - for a small companyHopefully the recent acquisition did not include any pensionliability.(holder) SEE BELOW extract from half yearly report(last August)PensionsBond yields, which remain at historically low levels, and inflation expectations continue to adversely impact the pension scheme valuation. An actuarial loss of £1.1m, net of tax, has been recognized in reserves during the period, with the pension scheme deficit increasing to £22.3m (30th June 2016: £21.9m). Following completion of the triennial valuation as at 31st December 2015, the Group has agreed a revised deficit reduction plan and schedule of contributions which will result in annual cash contributions increasing by approximately £0.5m.
freedom-thirty5
31 Oct 2017
Re: worth a look? It’s a weird one this. Dirt cheap by any measure. Excellent dividend. Sound financials. Business is good. I don’t see any reason why it would be a value trap. Yet inexplicably unloved by the market. Peculiar.
Blanketstacker
30 Oct 2017
worth a look? This company is a mechanical and electrical contractor, with an excellent reputation and a bulging order book. It has dropped since going ex-div in September, and is now 20% off its high. The fall today is a result of a general downgrade in the construction sector.The figures are
ER = 5.5PEG = 0.09Yield = c4% (covered x2.5)No debt, and the possibility of a return of embezzled revenue boosting the coffers. Overall this seems a decent spot for your cash, with a more reasonable price being c95p.
gretel
06 Oct 2017
CTO and Big Data New article about the recent acquisition - good to see CTO driving home the point about their move into the technology and big data space.Here's the intro and a paragraph about the potential use of Big Data (it's a long article):[link] Strategy driving our ETON acquisitionPosted: 04th October 2017 TClarke Group Managing Director, Mike Crowder and ETON Director Jamie Ward set out the strategic picture behind TClarke’s acquisition of Integration specialists ETON Associates Technology is a strategic growth area for the whole construction sector The Construction marketplace is moving rapidly towards integration of all building systems and digital networks. This is being driven hard - both by end users and equally by principal contractors. Both see big benefits - in the efficiency of the building and the efficiency of the construction programme. Big data is transforming the world of property management by allowing building owners, users and operators to measure, manage and improve efficiency - whether that be by saving energy or using space in far better ways - but that only happens once you have integrated ICT systems delivering all the data you need. For principal contractors, the increasing complexity of data, security and alarm networks has added to the complexity of construction programming. On major integration projects we can now simplify this for them - allowing them to deliver high quality - but with less management and simplified construction planning, dealing with one supplier instead of four. Giving TClarke complete control for major integration projects This acquisition gives us complete control to deliver major integration projects. It is the perfect addition to our substantial existing capabilities - and we know through practical experience. Because ETON are not only market leaders, this team is one we have worked alongside on landmark projects like 22 Bishopsgate, Bloomberg Place, HM Treasury and Angel Court for over 20 years. So we know each other very very well, we share values and we know their teams and their leaders very well.""Now is the perfect time This move makes so much sense at this point in time because the technologies are now there to match the concepts. Big Data is a global reality now and it will have a massive impact across construction. For example, one global industrial company we know has a target of dropping their energy consumption by 1% and this would net them $1bn. It was not possible just a few years ago because the technology was not there. Now with IP addressable metering you can pick up 20 lines of information from a single meter and the potential to learn from the data and make savings can become a reality. The only 'But' is that you have to have truly intelligent buildings or you can't get the data you need to access the savings. As we move forward there are yet more technology advances - like power delivered over IP so you can run power for light fittings round the same ethernet cabling that delivers data. When you put ETON’s integration capabilities alongside TClarke’s substantial data infrastructure, fire and alarm systems then we know that there is no one else in the market with this depth and breadth of expertise and resource."
