18p. 29 apr 9.7p

Bought a few of these today in my isa. interest is rising and M&S have transferred some extra business to them. I think they may get taken over and expect them to bounce back.

AGM TODAY.ALOT OF UNIQ CHILLED FOOD IS M&S.

OVER 12p.8 MAY NOW OVER 15p

over 24p now

amazing increase in just a few days but even so I bought more today!! They are rumoured to be on the point of selling their profitable european businesses for more than the present mkt cap---also have streamlined the uk business and won new contract from M/s. on the other side a poster who I think is genuine has done meticulous research and is expecting a multi multi bagger. that is the title of his thread for uniq---fingers crossed he's right!!

Will second that recommendation for his well researched posts and two excellent threads .... if you're considering jumping on. Silly me didn't realise UNIQ was isable, so will attend to that first thing .. thanks mplus.

Had myself a few of these myself today, looks like a genuine recovery situation based on selling assets off.

As you can see for 2010 a Positive P/E of 6.4 is estimated with actual NAV of 52.6p per share for last year 2008.

Surely this stock is well undervalued on just those two measures alone.

Its interesting to see the positive Broker points.....

Uniq PLC

FORECASTS
2009 2010

Date Rec Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p) Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p)

Investec Securities
14-05-09 HOLD -0.85 -0.62 6.40 5.52

Numis Securities Ltd
30-04-09 BUY -11.30 -7.00 2.40 1.50


2009 2010
Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p) Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p)

Consensus -6.22 -3.90 0.00 4.34 3.45 0.00

1 Month Change -5.37 -3.28 0.00 -2.06 -2.07 0.00
3 Month Change -9.04 -5.52 0.00 -10.84 -5.78 0.00


GROWTH
2008 (A) 2009 (E) 2010 (E)

Norm. EPS % % %
DPS % % %

INVESTMENT RATIOS
2008 (A) 2009 (E) 2010 (E)

EBITDA 13.00m 21.23m 25.06m

EBIT -8.50m m m

Dividend Yield % % %

Dividend Cover x x x

PER -3.60x -5.64x 6.38x

PEG f f f

Net Asset Value PS 52.60p p p

BIG MOVE

UP 2p

Marie business sold subject to shareholder approval for circa 63 million --uniq will be debt free and other businesses still to dispose of so cash value per share will be much higher--hopefully the sp will rise steadily to match over the next few months.

Cash value per share will only be higher MP if the sale receipts arent diverted to the pension deficit pot and I reckon they will if past performance is anything to go by.

Its looking rather overbought is this stock now but wont go short will be neutral and watch for an entry sub 20p.

SELL NOTE just appeared on hemscott...

Uniq PLC

FORECASTS
2009 2010
Date Rec Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p) Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p)

Shore Capital [R]
29-06-09 SELL -5.80 -5.10 -5.40 -4.70

In Shares magazine today :-
Domestic bliss at Uniq.
A binding 51 million offer for the last remaining French business of chilled foods group Uniq continues the firms recovery and could increase its attractions to a predator. Trade sources believe the firm will shortly announce the disposal of its other European businesses. Although these are a mixed bag their sale will convert Uniq into a purely domestic business, which willl make it a much more attractive partner for another food group such as Northern Foods. (NDFS)
Shares says :- + Speculative BUY.

Does'nt UNIQ still have businesses in Germany, Netherlands and Poland?

the Uniq website. (uniq.com)
We are a European chilled convenience food group enjoying many market-leading positions, selling our products in 12 countries.

We manufacture in the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland and employ 6,600 people.

Uniq, the European convenience foods group, announces that it has received a binding offer for the sale of its French business, Marie SAS (Marie), from Groupe L.D.C (LDC), the leading French poultry and delicatessen group ("the Proposed Disposal").

Cant see them doing anything else but pay down the pension deficit with monies recd from the disposals.

uniq now 31p

35p NOW

Rainmaker on advfn is predicting a profit tomorrow......

The remaining UK business is an interesting proposition.In 2007 after a poor first half it made 5.9mln and in 2008, largely thanks to a 15mln rise in commodity input prices lost 3.3mln. However if you adjust the performance of the UK business for subsequent cost savings announced by the Company taking into account the following-

Restructuring-ie the closure of the Paighton factory, saving 11mln a year from 1 January 2010.

Sale of loss making business-Pinneys which was sold March this year lost 2.2mln in 2008(and 1mln in 2007) from 1 April 2009.

Streamlining-annual saving of 2mln a year through a 15% reduction in the wage bill at Minsterly from 1 July 2008

Commodity Input Price inflation-an extra 15mln added to operating expenses in 2008

So for current year 2009 take profit or loss in previous year,2007 or 2008 + 3/4 of annual Pinneys loss+ 1/2 of Minsterly annual saving for 2008/all of Minsterly saving for 2007+15mln for 2008.

in the current year 2009 using adjusted 2008 figures-
3.3mln loss + 15mln+1.65mln+1mln=14.35mln or 12.5 eps........... ENDS

again.........14.35mln or 12.5 eps...........

and......

Rainmaker - 17 Jul'09 - 01:03 - 5490 of 5490


Hi .., excellent stuff. I would be amazed if Uniq reported a loss at the interims-see post 5489 as I've said before I believe it's going to be reality check time for Brokers covering this stock and I believe NM has the right idea ie a profit. I shouldn't say that as two Brokers are predicting losses for the current year of 12mln and 14mln.But see my previous post, 5489............ENDS

"He'd be amazed if they reported a loss tomorrow."


So hes looking for a profit...... interesting.

gf
i dont really understand fundys but can see the logic in the explanations offered in your above post. my concern would be that having pruned back hard, ie disposals or closures of loss makers plus maybe cut backs in costs over many other areas then the resultant effect on bottom line will show up fairly quickly (relative). but what are we left with? a lean mean machine/ company? stripping out lossmakers and making overhead cutbacks all at the same time will produce that (relative) quick fix. but will it be just that or will it hinder future growth potential? what of the parts that are left? can they and do they now have the ability to increase that top line? or is it likely to slowly shrink long term whilst that bottom line has been quickly shored up short/ medium term? maybe all the savings have now been made and will show themselves?
but what of next year?
btw i dont understand fully that Commodity Input Price Inflation figure of 15 mil added to operating expenses for 2008 but recovered back or at least not added to so it seems to year 2009. are they a company susceptible to commodity price changes? but what of next year? will it be required to deduct it once again if commodity prices rise? please excuse my ignorance on these matters. thank you.
as you say .... interesting.
regards
jkd

A very poor result and a lot less than investors were looking for although i note management have dressed it up the best they can, wouldnt mind but the best part of the results as come from the business they are selling!!!!.

NO PROFIT then.....(Loss)/profit before tax
(12.5)

DEBT now 36.5 million

PENSION DEFICIT getting worse and worse.

The stock is now way overvalued IMHO.

http://www.moneyam.com/InvestorsRoom/posts.php?tid=14307&from=1&to=500

Rather than polluting unrelated threads with you ramping - why not play here.

From Motley Fool.....



Published in Company Comment on 30 July 2009

This former turkey has ten-bagged since Christmas.

One of the biggest movers on Thursday was UNIQ (LSE: UNIQ), maker of snacks, salads, sauces and deserts. Increased losses at the company prompted a 20% drop in the share price at the start of the day, although half of this ground was re-gained as trading progressed.

This fall from 36p to 29p will have little impact on stoic shareholders, who have seen the price collapse from over 250p two years ago to a mere 2.4p last December, securing the company a not-so-coveted place in the 99% Club.

Pension problems

So what went wrong? Unlike many of the horror stories over the past couple of years, debt was not a problem -- the main concern at UNIQ was, and is, the pension deficit. Spawned from the giant Unigate dairy operation, the company's pension fund covers 21,000 member, while the business now employs less than a third of that number.

On this morning's figures, the group pension deficit increased from 170.9m to 215.7m (on an IAS 19 basis) over the past six months, which is roughly equivalent to six times last years gross profit.

Competition

And it's a competitive business, as the company is up against rivals such as Northern Foods (LSE: NFDS) and Iceland's Bakkavor. Selling into strong customers like Tesco (LSE: TSCO), Sainsbury (LSE: SBRY) and Marks & Spencer (LSE: MKS) can't really be fun at the moment either.

While people stubbornly continue to eat, they're cutting back on supermarket sandwiches and other discretionary spending.

The plan

But the company has a plan: It's selling off non-core businesses, particularly in its Northern European territories of France, Germany, and Poland, and slimming down to focus on the British market. This will free up cash to plug the hole in the pension fund, and let the company get on with the business of making money.

Losses in UK were lower than previously, and as part of the slimming process the French business is being sold for 73m, pending approval by the shareholders in a couple of weeks.

Would you buy it?

Putting a value on this business is a huge challenge. The market hasn't been able to do it with any consistency, when we consider the 99% fall in share prices, followed by a fifteen-fold increase since Christmas.

It involves not just taking a view on public's appetite for prepared foods, but also on the value of UNIQ's assets in the current market, and on future fluctuations in the value of that pension fund. It may still be amazing value, but that's too many variables for me, so in Dragons' Den terms, I'm out.

The sums were just as hard back in the December, when an intrepid denizen of our discussion boards bought a chunk of the business close to the bottom, and doubtless has done rather well out of it.

At the time, the company was valued at just 3.5m, with sales approaching 800m, so on a price-to-sales ratio (PSR) alone it was pretty extreme value, but the possibility of the company collapsing entirely was very real. On that occasion at least, fortune favoured the brave.

Numis Securities
31st July 2009
UNIQ
Retain Price Buy Target - 56p

Mid price finished at 30.125p today - Sale of North Eastern European businesses pending ? IMHO

Goldfinger/fast investor and all other aliases

How's the short? LOL
Was it around 25p you were calling this short?

Do the mam investors not realise how you are regarded as a joke on the other side?

Buy now at 36.5p !

gf
z's post is in my opinion to be taken with a pinch of salt, which i see you have done. i, and most likely all others on here make our own minds up. personally i find your posts most informative and welcome. i've done my own research and followed you into several, although not all. so thanks!
regards
jkd

Just go direct to the source and cut out the lapdog - CR thread

z
i have no idea what you are talking about! maybe i'm just too daft to understand.
whats CR thread? please advise, thank you.
regards
jkd

Wouldnt bother with him jkd.

This came to light this weekend.

Only showed up late friday and too late for the UK B/Boards to react to the news.

Obviously the Broker fed the analysis to their clients before release for general market observation. Now we know why the SP as fallen for the last 3 days.

FinnCap
12-08-09 SELL -12.90 -14.20 1.90 -0.30

So they are predicting 1.9 million pre tax and negative EPS of -0.30 for 2010.

With a SELL recommendation and more importantly this is post results and assets sale news............. not very bullish it would seem.

Mind dont know how they get negative earnings i thought Uniq had tax losses to offset.

uniq on the up - now buy at 34.8p -sale of eastern european markets pending or uplift from cadburys offer ? imho.

SOLDOUT TODAY.

Sell recommendations? LOLS.

Does anybody know how to add the PLUS tickers to the stockwatch on moneyam?
Thanks

Uniq now 45p - somthings up - deal pending re norh eastern european companies for sale ? imho

Very likely - they did say in late June that the: "Process for the disposal of the northern European businesses is proceeding in line with plan."

Uniq - now buy 46p - sales of NE European businesses pending ? Is it about to take off ? IMHO

Why should it al, the companys going to use all the money they get from sales to pay off some of the pension deficit they have....... and still be left searching for more funds for the rest of the deficit.

The companys way overvalued at 46p already.

Nearly doubled since someone suggested shorting it due to pension deficits, broker notes......LOL

Yes foolish gullible inexperienced investors who have been duped by a group of die hard cheats across the road have helped the SP rise.

Pity they have got caught up in this exercise where I post a quote from the ring leader from late spring.... " i will certainly be very suprised ----y if this stock isnt at least 120p by the end of september".

Wont see these guys for dust when the RNS comes out showing the sales of the North Euro business and the fact that near damm it all proceeds are going to pay for the pension deficit.

Check the situation out, theirs one big probability that the companys massive pension liability cant be erased other than using the euro sales revenue.

From another angle....

On the analysts figure who is the only one with a buy rating the stock is trading on a forward P/E of 18 to 2010.

A butty maker and wholesaler on a bloated P/E of 18...... pull the other one.

Got a right tonking today, wouldnt bet against the same early next week either.

Hyped up stock.

Actually they fell about 2p. Poor market friday - most stocks were down with ftse losing 90 points. When they sell the NE European businesses (pending ) there could be a substantial rise. imho.

6.98% fall friday, thats a tonking to me.

Why should their be rises on the sale of the Euro business?..... everythings already in the price Al and more.

Its all going to be directed imho to bridging the substantial pension deficit.

Improved isa allowance comes into force today for over 50's - you can add 3000. Under 50's will have to wait until next tax year to get 10,200 allowance.

Falling today.

There seem to be feint echoes -Fast Investor, Slater, Oliverleftwingtit and many others - a case load of sad aliases for the psychiatrist's couch. LOL

Not long to go to February now.......

Nicola Mallard, and analyst at Investec Securities who is forecasting 6m earnings before interest and tax in 2010 for Uniqs UK operations, said trading was on an upward trend, but added that a decision by Uniqs pension trustees in February next year on how Uniq should service an estimated 270m in pension liabilities would be crucial for the company.

.

Link to today's trading update:

UNIQ swings into profit in Q3

Re the Pension Fund:

"The last major legacy facing the Group is the disproportionate scale of the main UK pension fund deficit, the details of which were set out in the annual report, and more recently in the interim statement at the half year. We have commenced discussions with the Trustee of the main UK pension scheme to address this issue as part of the Scheme Specific Funding (SSF) process. The result of these discussions will have a fundamental impact on the long term future of the UK business and on shareholder value."

UNIQ buy in Shares mag today

A long awaited earnings recovery strategy asset disposals and the possibility of merger and aquisition activity all make chilled foods group UNIQ an appetising investment as the firm bounces back from a torrid two years.
Last weeks third quarter trading update demonstrated welcome progress, as the UK businesses haven finally returned profitability.
More importantly the company confirmed the process of selling its remaining European operations was well advanced. Shares believes they will be sold in the next ten weeks for some 40 million. After this disposal the company will be a cash-generative UK chilled food business with sales of some $300 million and a net cash position.
Following its retreat from europe, the 47 million cap has indicated it will boost its investment in its UK desserts business to increase both its flexibility and the scope for inovation.
Although viable, a group with turnover of 300 million would be considered to be too small by many analysts, a merger with another similar food manufacturer business such as Norther foods or Dairy Crest would be logical.
Uniqs 300 million in tax loss carry forward would held to lubricate any deal.
One obstacle still to be overcome is Uniqs pension deficit, which stands at 100 million on an accounting basis but is somewhat higher on an actuarial calculation. Negotations with the pension trustees, which has to be finalised by next June, will act as a constrait on sentiment. These discussions are likely to conclude with a compromise, with the company paying more into the fund utilising the procedds from the European sales, but with the rights of benificiaries being reduced.

Shares says ;- There is more good news to come BUY at 40.75p.

40 million for the NE European businesses is apparently the lowest estimate - could be considerably more boosted by the recent rise in the euro. Selling welll advanced and when it happens will give a considerable boost to sp. imho.

Why should it Al, all in the price and more imo.

Nasty bearish Double Top formed on the chart and lower indicators all negative. A fall back to support at 30p would be logical here if 50 day EMA at 34p doesnt hold.

One of the nastier charts around at the moment and no doubt the TA brigade have latched onto this over the last few days.

Up 4 fold since beginning of May,but looks to be one where caution is required at the mo.

Certainly so CP.

Looks to have 30p written all over it and then that might be a little generous even with the north Euro business in the SP.

Been a lovely profitable short for me so far.

Not in isolation though.

B/board favourites getting smashed all over the place and Ive got a few short from last thursday.

Not a keen shorter, but one as to make a living.

Yep going down the swany and very quickly.

The hype over the summer months cant have helped this one.

30p and very quickly imo.

Dam GF your up late ,,you've got to stop these all night clubbing sessions .

Yep my quack says so aswell jimmy.

Short going nicely here.

30p on the cards i reckon.

Im watching cnbc here the GDP figures are going to be good ,may help the general market.

30p not far off now.

What a corker of a short.

All puff and wind on this one. Pity the poor suckers who got roped in by the man across the road.

Remember I told you so.

And remember what i said about the pension deficit and how the selling of the companys silver ware would be used LOL lol ,lol ,lol lol lol lol .......

USE OF PROCEEDS

The net proceeds (after costs of approximately 3 million) from the sale will be used to eliminate Group net debt (pro forma 2.5 million at 25 September 2009 following the sale of Marie), with the balance being applied to shaping the long term future of Uniq whilst having regard to the significant UK pension deficit. ...ENDS

To be truthfull though I feel sorry for those who have been duped here.

Crikey GF what are you doing up at this time of night ?

Hi Jimmy,

been a bit off colour of late. Doc says ive got to moderate a bit.

Cant sleep much at the moment so helps to be able to post in the small hours.

That aside the news from the management here is very dissapointing given that the wallys over the road were expecting 70 to 80 million for the sale proceeds.

Can see this drifting to 30p and below after the initial puffining as subsided.

cheers mate.

Sorry to hear that GF, take it easy .

From The Times - rumour of the day.

Uniq shares rose 5% to 34p after its disposal of its loss making business in the Netherlands for 18 million. The deal, which comes after exits from France, Germany and Poland puts Uniq in its best financiall position for some time and could make the company a future bid target according to FinnCap the broker.

Which joker at finns thinks these will be taken over with a pension deficit 4 times the size of the market cap..... LOL you just have to.

See the SP slipped to my target of 28p today.

Short returns get bigger by the day.

Now I did warn you.

yep!
thanks gf please do keep em coming.
regards
jkd

cheers JKD, on sick leave at the mo hope to be back in run up to xmas after this present crisis going on.

thanks mate.

Obsessive aliasing is bad for one's health.

slater
tempramental
buffett100bln
fast investor
ken lingh
mos trader
sikh trade
r11489
fireplace22
sykesa01
teapreacher
accordeon
devlin1
tara7
silent cartographer
tescisson
sirace
jpsmithson
royaloak
roundup
blade912
gringo6
carlos124
2jupster
goodwill3
pigeon1
howmanyfools
mrmiyagi
mreasygoing
extrastrongbuy
cahoonerburger
ans30bb

Those loses must be hurting zscrooge........ now if you had a fiver for each of those so called alias you have printed you would only be 20 grand in loss.

Just look at the next post, its an eye opener........

Lifted from across the road re - uniq, i cant commentate on its authenticity but its been posted all the same,...................

Maybe people are realising that this stock isn't at the cutting edge of the food industry. I'm struggling to find what future the company has as our competitors are eating away at our market share. People on this BB are too fixated with the huge turnover that Uniq generates.

The senior management at Minsterly are useless and are not worth their 130k PA, yes you know who you are, the ones that are on contract. I know for a fact that there are going to be huge losses this year for the group as cost cutting from supermarkets take hold, this hasn't been realised by the inadequate management and passed onto Uniq's suppliers.

I am expecting a lot of red arrows for this but in the medium to long term only time will tell.

DYOR and all that but you have been warned...

God knows what across the road means ?- as you say not authenticated so why post it ? - Unless youre a SHORTER of course and wish to unsettle holders ? . Anyway youve said you are in previous posts.
Uniq supplies 60 % of Marks and Spencers sandwiches and they demand the highest standards from their suppliers, so dont talk rot !

Err al,

im just the errand boy with this post from iii and yes i am short.

And if you check the post again its not the standards of uniq that are being questioned but the costs at which they are paying to maintain them standards.

Well theyll recieve over 100 million when the sale of all their european businesses goes through so as theyre now concentrating on the uk it makes sense it invest in it and make it state od the art wth quality suppliers to satisfy.
From advfn site I understand the following was also put on iii board but you chose not to copy. It reads:-
A couple of intresting posts on the other board in reply to a very dubious one earlier in the evening.
From Oddiel.
This is rubbish - I know for a fact that one of the 3 business units at Minsterely recorded a profit last week of 97k. At that rate 5 million a year is easily achievable not to mention the other 2 units which are being developed rapidly with more lines coming on in the new year.
Minsterely alone should be making 10 million a year from 2010 following restructuring and new kit. There are senior managers that have been brought in to help with site development and inovation, this can only accelerate the protitability.

From kopalot.
The Evercreech site is also performing well - orders coming out of their ears and they now deliver from the factory rather than use a third party storage. They are currently achieving 99.8% efficiencies - shame about the other .2% (joke).
This is a massive transformaton and I'm sure we will see positive results. A buy at this low sp.

Stange that you did not reproduce these posts also !11

Yep but is it not the case that you also choose to neglect the negatives??????????.

Surely if we are being sincere here we are looking after our own interests and posting as such.

The problem here is that the company have a pension scheme (legacy of Unigate) which is in deficit by about 4 times the companys market cap at last look. (not BT where the deficit is less than 1 time market cap)

Now thats serious and all this balderdash which as beeen slung on the net by students trying to 2nd guess just how healthy the present situation is, is just that........balderdash.

My own take here is that ALL the monies recieved from the Euro business will be used to help bridge that gap so all this talk of a cash rich company will turn out to be untrue.

I refer you to a point made by the companys IN HOUSE BROKER......

Restructuring costs add to Uniq losses
By Thomas Williams
Published: July 30 2009 17:43 | Last updated: July 30 2009 17:43
Chilled food group Uniqs losses deepened in the first six months of the year as restructuring and pension costs continued to eat into efforts to reverse sales declines by focusing on its UK market.
The groups pre-tax losses on continuing operations in the first half were, at 12.8m, almost five times as large as the first six months of 2008 when Uniq lost 2.6m. This was against a much smaller fall in revenue on continuing operations, which was 141.1m in the first half compared with 143.4m the previous year.
However Martin Beer, the groups finance director, said that much of the loss could be attributed high interest charges on credit facilities agreed in January, a foreign exchange hit from changes resulting from the withdrawal from Uniqs European operations and a notional 5m annual charge to service Uniqs pension liabilities.
The groups UK business also neared break-even point with a loss of 1.3m. Its Food to Go business was buoyed by 27m of business won from Marks and Spencer and The Co-operative. The group is also set to pick up 73m from the sale of French business LDC, which is likely to be completed later this year. Business in northern Europe, which is also slated for sale, turned a profit of 2.6m in the first half compared with a loss of 2m in 2008.

Nicola Mallard, and analyst at Investec Securities who is forecasting 6m earnings before interest and tax in 2010 for Uniqs UK operations, said trading was on an upward trend, but added that a decision by Uniqs pension trustees in February next year on how Uniq should service an estimated 270m in pension liabilities would be crucial for the company.

Your comment re UNIQ has debts of 270 million is absolutely rediculous - uniq already have a fund holding 100 million set aside to support the pension fund as necessary.
The actuaries who deal with the pension fund are the only ones in the know - its a long term on gonig situation which can be dealt with over the next ten years if necessary. With the rises in the ftse over the last six months any pension deficit will have decreased considerably.
Anyway Im quite happy with Uniqs sage "Rainmaker" whose commment on advfn on Dec 1st I quote :-
Thin volume is allowing the sp to be manipulated, Ben Grahams famous quote springs to mind once again "In the short term the stock market is a voting machine but in the long term it is a weighing machine" Its ironic that Uniqs went down today yet the rise in the ftse 100 meant that Uniqs pension deficit dropped by 6.8 million. I believe total debt is now around 20 million.
Another interesting figure to ponder upon is that at current levels Uniq has a capitalisation figure of 32.6 million yet in the last month has agreed to sell three North East European businesses for 43.5 million giving it net cash of 41 million when the funds are recieved in March. Lastly, Uniq is trading profitably.
Is this not a bargain I see before me ?
Another Ben Graham quote "Investors should let a companys underlying fundamentals as dictated by earnings assets etc be their guide and not the share price".
Shorting Uniq at current levels is a very dangerous game.

Your quoting of rainmaker over the road does nothing but discredit you.

Ive found the man to have told porky after porky during the summer season.

How on earth can you trust a bloke who said........

"this stock will surely be in the region of 90p to 120p late summer".

I continue to remain short with a sp target of 24p and then 19p.

Taking a battering.

24p next level.......

Alan have you sold out yet?????.

Been out all day - taking a battering - down .75p - Big deal ! - going to top up next week.

On the short side????

Nope - the other way of course !!

Alan, did you buy today??.

Reckon youl pick these up at around 24p later this week maybe less.

Not much meat left on the bone now.

Todays trades paint a really depressing picture.....



dem bones dem bones them dry bones, dem bones dem bones dem dry bones.

We had 24p at one time today.

Looks to me like long term holders capitulating and speculators coming in.....

they wont be in for long.

20p here we come.

Dont let these shocking shorters persuade you to part with your shares - they work en-masse drip selling shares which can be very frustrating on a down ftse day. Others are assigned to write negatively re shares on bb' etc.(Sry, sure you knew this anyway)
This is a quality share - see following post taken from advfn dated 1700hrs today and posted by 818332. :-

Such short termism - Great buying opportunity.
People should refocus on their research which they did before buying into this great company. Selling out of panic or fear is never a clever move.
Not allowing yourself to buy or sell on emotion is one of the hardest investment skills to master. Letting yourself fall foul to fear or greed normally means buying high and selling low.
There is no major bad news out there - the company is not going bust. GE has not misled shareholders at any stage and has been upfront about all the challenged Uniq faces - too upfront for some it seems. He has masterminded and sucessfully implemented a total turnaround in the business. It is now profitable and will be more so in the future as it continues to improve efficiency, invest in technology and win more contracts. Don't forget M&S don't give contracts to just any supplier. That UNIQ is in a position to win such a contract supplying M&S 60% of its sandwiches demonstrates its underlying strength.

No debt, in fact will have 41 million in the bank when the sale of the NE European businesses go through in March. Funds already set aside for the Pension and for future business investment, losses to carry forward so no tax liability.

Of course the pension deficit wll be an ongoing liability which is more than baked into the SP. But remember that punitive payments would not be in the intrests of the pension trustees - the payments would be manageable.

The house broker has forcasted an EPS of 6.5p on a PE of 7 giving an sp of 45.5p.
With more profit to come as the new business matures, this will steadily rise.

The time to buy a recovery stock is before it has recovered. Then employ a little patience.

" Of course the pension deficit wll be an ongoing liability which is more than baked into the SP"....... are you sure, are you really sure.???????????????????????????

I dont think so having had another look this aftrnoon at RNS items.

By the way alan if the author of that over the top piece was rainmaker punters might aswell just ignore it, his street cred as been blown to pieces and Im not the only one saying that either.

Nicola Mallard, and analyst at Investec Securities who is forecasting 6m earnings before interest and tax in 2010 for Uniqs UK operations, said trading was on an upward trend, but added that a decision by Uniqs pension trustees in February next year on how Uniq should service an estimated 270m in pension liabilities would be crucial for the company.

CHAIRMAN Ross Warburton Great bread man.

OFF WEB SITE UNIQ.COM

Sandwiches
We are a significant supplier to the UK market and in Continental Europe and continue to invest in the future of sandwich production to ensure sustained annual growth.

Desserts
Uniq is a market leader in the fast growing UK chilled indulgent desserts market. We are the leading supplier of retailer branded desserts in the UK.

Sauces, Dips and Dressings
We continue to provide new, innovative and great tasting products in convenient and easy-to-use formats for these growing markets.

JUST FOUND THIS.
Director's name:
John Warren
Director's position/role:
Interim Chairman
About this director:

Joined the Uniq Board in March 2007 as Non-executive Director. A fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, John is a former Group Finance Director of United Biscuits and W H Smith. He is a Non-Executive Director of Bovis Homes Group plc, BPP Holdings plc, The Rank Group plc and Spectris plc.

Appointed Interim Chairman on 25 June 2009. He is Chairman of the Audit Committee.

Hi Baylis, at what cost are UNIQ paying to keep standards up for the likes of M@S in face of retail competion and taking the hit themselves???

Are they taking a fall in margin just to supply more?.

Your thoughts appreciated.

ps, by the way spent over 25 years of my career in the retail trade, including M@S tesco woolies and farmfoods, also spent time in retail banking with the halifax and midland.

cheers GF.

Melt down on the cards and pretty quickly I reckon.

next level of support 19p/20p.........

19p/20p the chart says for forecast. Next level of support this and I wouldnt rule it going down through this either after the performance of the last month or so.

ThE resident shorter yells again - in reality the offer never fell below 24p and the share ended up only .75p down. !!

Makes you laugh when the people holding the stock dont even use bullish articles to there advantage.

For long enough we have had only one broker ie, broker Numis with a Buy reco on this stock and then approx 10 days ago Finn joined them with a Buy because they obviously thought they saw value with the SP falling so low.

And not one mention here or across the road!!!!!!!!!. pathetic.

'Get a grip bulls'

Uniq PLC

FORECASTS
2009 2010

Date Rec Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p) Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p)

FinnCap
02-12-09 BUY -3.20 -4.00 13.10 8.10

Without checking looks like the FinnCap forecast of 02-12-09 was in US "speak" and refers to 12th febuary 2009 when Uniq share price was at its nadir along with most of the ftse.
Uniq offer price now 27.5p and could have a good run up to 4th quarter results due on 8th January 2010. IMHO

NO it wasnt alan, they have changed stance from sell to buy.

And why not with the SP falling so much over the last 6 week or so.

Theres a fair price for everything........... dont get carried away with MARKET prices which tend to be at both extremes.

cheers.

NO it wasnt alan, they have changed stance from sell to buy.

And why not with the SP falling so much over the last 6 week or so.

Theres a fair price for everything........... dont get carried away with MARKET prices which tend to be at both extremes.

cheers.

Alan turned very bullish after that recent circular.

Seems at last the board are getting there act together.

Purchased another tranche yesterday.

Uniq up 16% today - Trding update tomorrow - could be good news ?

LOL Surely it's gotta be a sell, what with that pension deficit and all....

Hmmm - not sure about that ! Comment on advfn is that pension defecit not a problem and could be as low as 20 - 40 Million with future rises in ftse (if) erradicating defecit totally. Also will have 40 million in bank when sale of NE European businesses finalised in February.
Then Uniq will be streamlined to being a UK business only supplying (amongst others ) Marks and Spencers with 60 % of their sandwiches.
Anyway, trading update tomorrow - meeting starts 11.30am - could benifit sp !

From the FT.com Small companies closing report

Uniq, the convenience food maker, added 16 per cent to 28p ahead of Tuesdays shareholder meeting to dispose of its German, Polish and Dutch assets. Traders believe the company might provide an update on trading.

almoore - it was irony

Not at all...... its called trading.

UP UP UP I say.

transparent as glass

zscrooge - uniq not into iron sandwiches yet - try British Rail !!.
Comment from advfn uniq site - M and S now provides Uniq with 54% of its business - quite happy to be in that basket !

Yep almoore seen the thread -fine once you've waded through the sad aliases :-)

Dont know about sad aliases - hoping for 50p by April/May. - imho.

Well said alan.

Er let's see, I'm in now so that pension deficit not a problem and er, those broker reports, nah it's going to 50p, no make that 100p by end next week....
pathetic.

Oops - did we not get in at 25p - Q4 trading results due very soon. I stick by 50p by April/May but your 100p by next week could be pushing it a bit. Interesting comment in the daily mail last week - Uniq looking like a bid target !
By the way they were 46p only 7 weeks ago and Q4 is their most profitable period.

Well said alan.

M@S results tomorrow should give us a big boost.

Loads err money.

BROKER CALL:Jefferies sees value in food retailers
6 January, 2010 09:03:13 AM


The food retail team over at Jefferies International have issued a note highlighting the attractiveness of the sector. The broker points out that sector valuations remain undemanding adding that expectations are high for strong food inflation in 2010. Within the sector the broker keeps a Buy rating on WM Morrison and a 320p price target, a Hold rating and 340p price target on J Sainsbury though cuts Tesco to Hold from Buy lifting the price target to 440p from 420p following recent share outperformance.

LOL Al, you are way off target. I've been in Uniq since 6p and you keep missing the the irony -do I have to resort to putting on stupid smileys to underline it?

LOL goldfinger -back in now so time to cut n paste anything in sight in the hope it will influence anybody. What about the pension deficit and those bad broker notes -suppose those will come back when the sp might get a bit frothy. Pathetic and easily outed on adv*n.

Awaiting trading update - consensus view on advfn site based on last five years dates is :-
Friday 8th
Monday 11th
Friday 15th

Its official- Trading update Tuesday 19th January.
also:-
Completion of sale of Netherlands business.

Furher to the announcements made on 18th dec 09 and 5th jan 10, Uniq announces that today it has completed the sale of its Netherlands Business Units to Glide Equity Management (GEM) Benelux, for a total enterprise value of 20.0 million euros (18.0 million).

Hey zscroogey, I was in Uniq at 3.8p and informed the big wigs on the motley fool site and put them in.

Like I said before I trade for a living and yes if this becomes overvalued I will short it again.

LOL, outed on adv&n, are you sure?????????????????????????????????????.

lets get this right now who called the SP corrrect at 25p and which mug followed his leader rainmaker into thinking it was worth 120p/140p in the summer.

I dread to think just how much you lot have cost some poor souls.

At last some of the TA indicators are turning positive after weeks of total nagative readings.

Im my mind this is a very bullish signal and comes from a well respected USA TA site......

http://quote.barchart.com/texpert.asp?sym=UNIQ.LS&code=BSTK

No doubt we will have the cynics amongst us who talk of tea leaves etc, etc, but time and time again these indicators turn out excelent results.

I expect the indicators to turn up even more from here please remember this is just the base.

Would a kind person like to post this across the road please.

From the statement this morning......

the pro-forma position as at 26 December 2009 shows a cash surplus of GBP26m. Under the agreement we have with the pension trustee we expect to place approximately GBP40m in a separate account...... ends

we need further clarification from the management because If ive read this right and a lot of erlier birds seem to have got the same impression with the early sells.........

THIS IMPLIES A FUTURE NET DEBT POSITION OF 14m.

Sold my holding mid week, last week. I wasnt going to hang around for any blotches like this. Yet again the pension problem is clouding the picture here.

Not sure wether to go back short again.

If the management are meeting analysts maybe this point will be sorted out.

A deal to supply sandwiches to Marks & Spencer was among the activity that helped convenience food group Uniq return to sales growth in the fourth quarter. Sales grew by 4% in the 13 weeks to 26 December. In the desserts division, sales were up by 0.4% as a strategic plan took effect, helped by a good performance at Christmas. The 'Food to Go' division saw sales climb by 11.5%. Strong sales of sandwiches to M&S were partly offset by the decision of an airline supplied by Uniq to reduce food services on short haul flights. 'The improvement evident in the final two quarters of 2009 is encouraging and is expected to continue into 2010 despite the tough market environment, although the first 3 weeks of 2010 have naturally been adversely affected by the weather,' said Uniq.

Had a trading long on UNIQ, coming up to results... last year were on the 11th of March and company is returning to profitability. should have a RNS anytime now to inform when results are to be published.

expecting a rise up to about 35p to 40p over the coming months......

Uniq PLC
Final Results
RNS Number : 6540O
Uniq PLC
11 March 2009

Uniq Forecasts

Year Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth. Div Yield

30-Dec-09 720.23 (2.50) (1.94)p n/a n/a n/a n/a 0.0%

30-Dec-10 315.00 7.05 6.08p 3.9 n/a n/a n/a 0.0%

30-Dec-11 323.16 9.75 8.40p 2.8 0.1 +38% n/a 0.0%

concensus broker forecasts show we a trading on a perspective P/E of just 3.9 to dec of this year and a miserly P/E of 2.8 to dec 2011.......this stock is FAR TOO CHEAP imho.

goldfinger and its only 25p today, got some more.

Good lad, you see im not the baddy here you first thought.

Wish theyd give us a results date though.

From advfn site - re email recieved from Clare Carpenter (Eatons Sec I think) its Thursday 15th April 2010.

CHEERS ALMOORE.

From across road, thanks to mova.


RE: Update
Fri, 26 March, 2010 10:28:04From: "Clare.Carpenter@uniq.com" View Contact
To: xxxxxxxxxx@yahoo.co.uk


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Mr xxxxxxxxxxxxx



Uniq is not aware of any specific reason for recent movements in our share price.



Clare



Clare Carpenter

Assistant Company Secretary

Uniq plc, No. 1 Chalfont Park , Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire SL9 0UN

Tel: 01753 276136

Fax: 01753 276019

Email: clare.carpenter@uniq.com

Certainly worth having a look at UNIQ. Everything seems to be coming together on the chart all at once. I think results are out in 2 weeks time and this one tends to have a good run up to the results day.

my little brain can only cope with the simplest of charts, but the one below shows a potential useful break building above 25/50 dma levels, the next stopping pint in theory being at 200 dma

Yep looks like we could have a lot more before results on the 15th cyners.

good to see at last encouraging signs coming from this TA site where ALL the indicators were giving Sell signs only a few days ago and now we are starting to see both Buy and Hold signals.

and this is just the beginning. we are starting from a low base of nil and are now overall on 8%.

http://www.barchart.com/opinions/UNIQ.LS

cynic,
i know you like cycling so i do hope you will enjoy your beer at next stop. LOL
regards
jkd

don't follow that logic - whoops! just spotted (rotfl) - but have discovered a very nice watering hole on one of my local rides .... it comes after about mile 16 of 22, so nothing too strenuous either before or after

Yeeeeee Haaaaaaaaaaa first Broker note out for a long time and its good news even though it is a reiteration.....

Date Broker name New Price Old price target New price target Broker change

08-Apr-10 FinnCap Buy 0.000p 40.00p - Reiteration

40p SP target.

http://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/data/security?csi=10335&action=brokerrecommendations

I mentioned on friday that UNIQ had underperformed the sector and rivals over the last 6 months so that gives holders plenty to aim at for a recovering share price and growth going forward.

In the chart below Ive used Premier Foods and Northern foods as the bench mark as these companys are the ones most associated with UNIQ in thread discussions.

Ive also used the Food producers and processors as the sector comparison.


And if we look at fundies again UNIQ is way undervaluesd in comparison to the two stocks above mentioned going forward into 2011 :

Premier Foods

ForecastsYear Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth.

31-Dec-11 2,779.00 194.51 6.10p 5.3 0.4 +14%

Northern Foods

ForecastsYear Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth.

31-Mar-11 1,002.87 39.61 6.87p 9.0 0.7 +12%

Uniq Forecasts

Year Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth.

31-Dec-11 323.16 9.75 8.40p 2.9 0.0 +284%

(concensus broker figures Digital Look)

So we are looking at

Premier Foods with a EPS growth of 14% and a P/E of 5.3
Northern Foods with a EPS growth of 12% and P/E of 9

whilst with UNIQ we are looking at EPS growth of 284% and P/E of 2.9

The stock is way undervalued imho.

circa 10 low to circa 46 high would give us a fibonacci 50% at circa 28.
as always please dyor
regards
jkd

Thursday
=========
The Marks & Spencer update last Thursday boosted hopes ahead of the chilled-food producer Uniq's full-year figures this week.
FinnCap said news of M&S's sixth-consecutive quarter of like-for-like growth from food augured well for the likes of Uniq, which has a high exposure to the retail bellwether.
Beyond the read across from M&S, this week's results also give investors a chance to "catch up after a year of major change", the broker added, pointing out that all of the company's European operations "have been divested or agreed to be sold".

From;-
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/sharewatch/the-week-ahead-debenhams-to-follow-mss-strong-outlook-1942277.html

Sale of Uniq's German and Polish units cleared

Food group Uniq's sale of its German and Polish businesses has been cleared by competition authorities in Austria, Germany and Poland.

It says completion of the sale of Uniq Deutschland and Uniq Lisner to IFR Capital for 28.5m is expected to take place this month.

This will complete the sale of Uniq's continental European businesses.

The firm will announce its results for the year to the end of December on 15 April.


----------
PFD is moving higher today also if breaking 33p will help to further rise

Going well before results tomorrow.

I like the chart RSI, Ill nick that for a few other B/Boards....cheers.

At last up and through the short term resistance at 26p. Bodes well for the future.

Overall group loss before tax from continuing operations of 18.5M * Q1 sales up 4.2% to prior year * Revenue from continuing operations 287.2M * Agreed in principle an innovative long term pension framework

above is just a resume ..... numbers were ok but nothing to get excited about that i could see

Neither me.

Got out after first few mins.

Not what I was expecting which is a shame.

The drop is to do with the statement that the talks over the pension deficit will have a material effect on shareholder value "one way or other."

They mention it several times.

and sp has fallen through support too

The statement was a bit pesimistic, so no wonder of the share price reaction.

Maybe glad I did not have any, but instead holding PFD

order book / level 2 is weak in orders and volume on the bid side

dealerdealer.... and may take several months for pension regulator to pass!!!!!.

May come back here once we know whats just what.

By the way what a shity way to present your accounts uniq, especially the detail of the pension.

Uniq reported a pretax loss for 2009 of 18.5 million pounds, impacted by an 11.3 million pound pension-related finance expense. That compared with a loss of 0.1 million pounds the previous year. NOW BELOW 22p.

Has to be open to takeover now, unless the sp recovers over the next few days, which is unlikely.

that's true of almost any company, but though there may have been vague rumours, it would be a pretty silly reason to buy at this juncture

I wouldn't buy now myself, but anyone feeling like a gamble, purely a gamble, might consider that the underlying business is one that a few food producers out there might like to tuck under their belt. Just conjecture though!

LONDON (ShareCast) - The Pensions Regulator has refused clearance for a plan from convenience food group Uniq (LSE: UNIQ.L - news) to pay off a 436m deficit in its pension scheme.

Shares in the group plunged almost 30% on the news and is currently trading at 11 pence compared with Friday's closing price of 15.50 pence.

In April, the loss-making company said it reached agreement in principle with the pension trustee for a recovery plan.

However, the Regulator said the scheme, as currently constituted, does not meet all of its criteria for clearance.

Uniq said it is working together with the trustee to seek a resolution for the pension scheme, adding that it anticipates it will "take some time to resolve."

"The outcome of this process will have a fundamental impact, either positive or negative, on the pension scheme and on shareholder value," the group said.

While the company's market capitalization is about GBP10 million, it is saddled with a GBP436 million pension deficit.

brando u are correct. ive spent all
afternoon analysing the accounts and i
can quite honestly say after 2 years of
shorting this company and making a fortune
im going long tomorrow and looking for at
least a quick 100% return probably more.

The chart shows a bottom with MACD and other
oscillators rising.

Its a BUY.

And whats more it going out on my twitter account
to all top knob PIS first thing in the morning.

I called the pension issue right, U know that
someone else made a balls of it.

Thats over now.

UNIQ Is a buy and I reckon itl move very
fast, so dont delay but as always DYOR

I have after my system churned it out this weekend
as TOP BUY candidate

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/markets/article.html?in_article_id=522801&in_page_id=3#ixzz1DsZ1rZBb

Charles Hall, head of research at stockbroker Peel Hunt, said the proposal represented the 'only' solution. Hall said the company should see its share price re-rated so the value of investors' holdings would be maintained. Shares worth 5.6p now could be worth 50p if the deal is approved.



Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/markets/article.html?in_article_id=522801&in_page_id=3#ixzz1DvCIdRxS

The chart for Uniq is very bullish..

Not a bad day up 21%.

Added a few today. Still a bit of a gamble but there should be a substantial upside.............with care!

Certainly UNIQ looks very cheap on fundies as long as it gets approval from shareholders and the court for the restructuring in 10 days time on the 25th of Feb.

Uniq ForecastsYear Ending Revenue (m) Pre-tax (m) EPS P/E PEG EPS Grth. Div Yield
31-Dec-11 316.82 4.46 3.85p 1.8 0.0 +229% n/a 0.0%

31-Dec-12 328.56 5.71 4.93p 1.4 0.0 +28% n/a 0.0%

EPS growth of 229% and a Forward P/E of kust 1.8 to Dec 2011 make it very cheap.

It would be sheer madness if the restructuring wasn't given approval GF. This is Britain however, where sheer madness appears to be the norm! ;o)

Here we are from data explorers just about
only 35k stock out on loan but there has been
a fall off in there kast few day as you can see,
not much though so my conclusion is that its new
share holders buing the stock . in my eyes a
BIG POSITIVE. Shows confidence that the restructuring
will be passed on thee 25th......

goldfinger not sure if all Spreadbet/CFD trades are hedged and would there show no loan stock. Like the 50p target price set by Peel Hunt so good things could still come from UNIQ from this level.

Up 45% today so far.

Reminder..


Henderson is backing Uniq pension deal
By Jeff Prestridge
13 February 2011, 12:20pm
Fund manager Henderson is backing Uniq's ground-breaking proposal to tackle its crippling 436m pension fund deficit by handing over more than 90% of shares in the chilled food firm to the scheme's trustees.





Henderson, one of several City institutions to hold stakes in Uniq, said the restructuring represented the 'only show in town'. 'Either it gets approved or Uniq goes bust,' a spokesman said.
The investment group holds Uniq shares through Henderson UK Equity Income fund and the Lowland and Law Debenture trusts.

In a deal with the Pensions Regulator and Pension Protection Fund, after 18 months of haggling, Uniq is ceding 90.2%t of its shares to the pension fund.

With a 14m cash injection into the fund, this would close the gap between the scheme's 600m of assets and 1 billion in liabilities, Uniq said.

It will also preserve 90% of the benefits built up by members - those already in payment would be paid in full. The scheme has 20,000 members.

But crucially, the complex arrangement must be approved by Uniq's 11,000 shareholders in a vote that takes place in 12 days.

Charles Hall, head of research at stockbroker Peel Hunt, said the proposal represented the 'only' solution. Hall said the company should see its share price re-rated so the value of investors' holdings would be maintained. Shares worth 5.6p now could be worth 50p if the deal is approved.



Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/markets/article.html?in_article_id=522801&in_page_id=3#ixzz1E82JBn31

Now 78%. Very tempted to buy more.

Many thaks GF

By bringing it to our attention a couple of days ago I did some research and jumped on board and have just made a packet.

Thanks

Restructuring passed. A dobubling of SP from here I reckon.

one of the mighty fallen ....

and beware a potential (serious) resistance as 200 dma is hit ....

.

Interesting to see NO stock or minscule
stock out on loan at UNIQ. (shorts)

Is this the ISA effect and rebalancing or
are the shorters fearful now of reorganisation?