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Connect Group operates a diverse portfolio of businesses leading distribution specialists in carefully chosen markets. With a combined revenue of £1.8bn, we employ 4,500 staff and operate in the UK and worldwide.

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Connect Group Fundamentals

SMITHS NEWS AGREES NEW FIVE YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH FRONTLINE AND SEYMOUR

Smiths News PLC ('Smiths News'), the largest UK newspaper and magazine wholesaler, a leading UK book supplier and a leading distributor of consumable products to the education market, is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with Frontline and Seymour to extend their magazine wholesaling agreement until April 2020.

This new agreement secures 42% share of the magazine market for an additional five years. The contract is valued at c.£215m pa (at FY14 values) equating to 15% of the total national newspaper and magazine distribution market. Frontline distribute titles from publishers H Bauer, Immediate Media and Haymarket, while Seymour distribute magazines on behalf of many publishers including Future Publishing and Dennis Publishing.

Smiths News has now secured c.£1.1billion per annum of revenues through to at least 2019, and in some cases beyond, equating to 77% of total sales.

SMITHS NEWS PLC CHANGES NAME TO CONNECT GROUP PLC


In line with its strategy to become a more broadly diversified specialist distribution business and as previously announced on 17 March 2014, Smiths News confirms it has today changed its name to Connect Group PLC.

Trading in the Company's shares on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the new name of Connect Group PLC will take effect from 23 April 2014. The Company's stock exchange ticker will change to CNCT.

The Company's corporate website will change to www.connectgroupplc.com

Unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 28 February 2014


Highlights:

· Rebranding to 'Connect Group PLC' complete

· Robust Group financial performance; 24% profits outside newspaper and magazine wholesaling activities

· Continued strategic progress across the Group
- News & Media:
§ Secured over £1.1bn of total annualised revenues through to 2019 and beyond, representing over 77% of contracted revenues
§ Newspaper sales up 0.9% driven by new business wins, cover price inflation, strong promotions and continued progress on cost efficiencies with £3.2m achieved in first half
- Books:
§ Margin pressure and slower than expected return on investments impacted first half profit performance
§ Wordery continues to drive sales growth, now 11% of total Book sales
- Education & Care:
§ Strong sales momentum in core categories up 5.0%
Range alignment and expansion in new catalogues

· Trading in line with current market expectations

Thanks for new thread skinny, appreciated.

NWS/CNCT Combined chart.

175p touched.

Aberforth Partners LLP > 5%

175p broken atm.

180 on the bid - 190 and the 'gap' beckons.

Closed +24.

LGEN < 3%

Gap closed!

Interim Management Statement

Connect Group PLC ("the Group") a leading specialist distributor operating in three divisions; News & Media, Books and Education & Care, is today issuing its Interim Management Statement covering the 44 week period to 5 July 2014.

Total Group revenues increased 0.2% year on year and performance for the Group remains broadly in line with current market expectations for the full year.

The performance of each division is as follows;

· Connect News & Media; News revenues increased by 0.1% driven by strong World Cup sticker sales. Like for like revenues decreased by 2.1% with both newspaper and magazine performance continuing at recent robust run rates. Consequently, full year performance will be above previous expectations. Media revenues decreased by 3.2% and on a like for like basis by 2.8%.

· Connect Books; revenues increased by 2.6% due to recent acquisitions and by the continued strong performance of Wordery. Like for like revenues decreased by 3.2% reflecting increased pressure across other channels. Recent recovery actions expected to reduce costs and increase margins are being delivered, although as a result of continued sales pressure particularly in Library services and Academic markets we expect full year performance will be below previous expectations.

· Connect Education & Care; revenues increased by 2.2% and on a like for like basis by 2.2%. Core revenues were up 4.4% on a like for like basis with the Education and Early Years channels performing more strongly than the smaller Care channel. Momentum is building for the key peak trading period which has started as planned and full year performance remains in line with previous expectations.

There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the half year ended 28 February 2014 and the Group continues to operate well within its bank facilities.

The Group will announce its preliminary results for the twelve months ending 31 August 2014 on 15 October 2014.

N+1 Singer Hold 173.50 184.00 184.00 Reiterates

Oriel Securities Buy 173.50 - 225.00 Reiterates

Pre Close Statement

Connect Group PLC ("the Group")a leading specialist distributor operating in three divisions; News & Media, Books and Education & Care, is today issuing its pre close statement for the twelve months ending 31 August 2014.

Since the previous update on 8 July 2014, the Group and each of its divisions have performed in line with management expectations and, as a result, Group underlying profit before tax is expected to be in line with recent guidance. Group basic underlying EPS is expected to be slightly ahead of recent guidance as a result of prior year tax credits being higher than previous management expectations. With respect to each division:

· Connect News & Media: Newspaper and magazine performance has continued at recent robust run rates. Media has performed in line with expectations.

· Connect Books: management actions are taking effect, and recent performance has stabilised in line with management expectations.

· Connect Education & Care: performance has been in line with management expectations through the peak trading period.

There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the half year ended 28 February 2014 and the Group continues to operate well within its new bank facilities.

The Group will announce its prelim results for the twelve months ending 31 August 2014 on 15 October 2014. An analyst briefing will be held at 9.30am on 15 October 2014 at the offices of Buchanan, 107 Cheapside, EC2V 6DN.

5yr contract extension with Guardian News & Media

Connect Group PLC ("the Group") a leading specialist distributor operating in three divisions; News & Media, Books and Education & Care, is today delighted to announce Smiths News, the UK's leading newspaper and magazine wholesaler, has reached an agreement with Guardian News and Media to extend their newspaper wholesaling agreement until February 2021.

The new agreement secures the existing 60% market share of Guardian News and Media's distribution business for an additional five years.

The contract is valued at £63m pa (at FY14 values) equating to 7% of the national newspaper distribution market. Guardian News and Media publishes both The Guardian and The Observer which sell 180,000 and 200,000 papers per day respectively.

Following this extension, Smiths News has now secured c.£1.2bn of revenues per annum (at FY14 values) through to 2019 equating to 84% of total sales.

Preliminary Results Announcement for the year ended 31 August 2014

2014 HIGHLIGHTS:

· Solid financial performance
o Group Underlying Revenue and Underlying PBT marginally ahead of last year
o Free cash flow of £37.2m, up 14.1%
o Net Debt reduced to £93.0m, 1.4x net debt / adjusted EBITDA

· Increased shareholder returns
o Underlying EPS 21.7p, up 2.8%
o Final dividend of 6.6p, making a full year dividend of 9.7p, up 4.3%

· Stronger than forecast Newspaper and Magazine sales
o Impressive World Cup sales
o Positive impact of Supermarket promotions

· Books division performance now stabilised with management actions continuing to take effect

· Education & Care division growing core categories and delivered good peak trading

· Launch of two new organic opportunities supporting ongoing diversification
o Pass My Parcel, a click and collect delivery service with Amazon, live in over 500 independent retailers
o Jack's Beans, a premium vended coffee service, live in 120 independent retailers

LAUNCH OF PASS MY PARCEL DELIVERY SERVICE WITH AMAZON

New click and collect delivery service with Amazon

Connect Group PLC ("the Group") a leading specialist distributor operating in three divisions; News & Media, Books and Education & Care, is today delighted to announce the launch of Pass My Parcel, a new and wholly owned 'click and collect' delivery service. Pass My Parcel is a solution developed by the News and Media division ("the Division") which over time has the potential to be part of the long term diversification strategy for the Division. Pass My Parcel has secured Amazon, the UKs leading on-line retailer to launch the service.

Pass My Parcel is a highly innovative new parcel collection service utilising the current Smiths News' specialist time sensitive distribution capability, physical network, and its daily relationship with thousands of local retailers across the UK, enabling the development and rollout to be achieved in a more cost effective way than other companies. Pass My Parcel will offer a unique twice daily distribution to participating independent retail outlets, 7 days a week, 364 days a year.

When selecting Pass My Parcel as a delivery option, customers ordering on-line by 7.45pm will be able to collect their parcel from 6.30am the next morning, or, if ordered by 11.45am will be able to collect from 4pm the same day. This service of two time sensitive deliveries per day, (once on a Sunday), offers customers a convenient and secure way to pick up their parcels, with a level of service and flexibility unlike any other offer in the market today.

Customers selecting Pass My Parcel delivery to their local independent retailer will be electronically sent a specially generated pin code in order to securely collect their parcel. This new service will allow customers more control over when and where they choose to pick up their items.

Pass My Parcel will utilise Smiths News' information systems, invoicing and communication facilities and provide access to over 500 independent retail outlets being serviced by 12 Smiths News' depots.

Ex-divi 8th Jan 2015 (6.6p)

Liberum Capital repeated its 'buy' call on the stock, with a 200 pence per share target price.

PROPOSED ACQUISITION OF TUFFNELLS PARCELS EXPRESS AND UNDERWRITTEN CIRCA £55 MILLION RIGHTS ISSUE

· Connect Group to acquire Tuffnells Parcels Express ("Tuffnells") a leading provider of next day Business to Business ("B2B") of mixed freight / parcel consignments, specialising in items of irregular dimension and weight;
· Leverages Connect Group's core capabilities in time sensitive and efficient delivery in specialist markets;
· A strong standalone business with proven track record underpinned by a large, fragmented and growing market;
· Provides the Group with a national distribution network with potential opportunities to enhance the Group's existing operations in the medium term, such as Pass my Parcel;
· The Acquisition is a significant strategic opportunity and a key step in the Group's medium term diversification ambitions;
· Initial consideration of £113.4m on a multiple of 6.3x LTM Adjusted EBITDA1, funded through recently extended debt facilities and circa £55m Rights Issue. Additional £15.3m deferred consideration subject to performance and retention conditions over a three year period;
· Run rate cost synergies of £2.0m per annum expected by year three and opportunity for additional revenue synergies through shared network and distribution capabilities;
· Strong financial effects of the transaction, being earnings enhancing in Year 1 and substantially enhancing in Year 3, with return on invested capital ahead of the Group's cost of capital in first full year2; and
· Strong cash generation supports continuation of the Group's progressive dividend policy

StockMarketWire.com
Connect Group has announced that shares not taken-up under its two-for-seven rights issue now been placed.

It said that J.P. Morgan Securities and Liberum Capital in their capacity as joint bookrunners, have procured subscribers for 4,197,167 new ordinary shares for which valid acceptances were not received at a price of 157p apiece.

Earlier, Connect Group said it received valid acceptances in respect of 49,940,069 new ordinary shares - approximately 92.2% of the total offered.

And the offer price dropped immediately to 150.5 at which point I was able to buy a few. Rude not to. Couldn't buy as many as I would have liked as I had already had a little spend up in the morning.

StockMarketWire.com
Connect Group has completed the acquisition of The Big Green Parcel Holding Company Limited, whose principal subsidiary trades as Tuffnells Parcels Express, as previously announced on 12 November, for an initial consideration of £113.4 million. The group has partly financed the acquisition through the proceeds of a two-for-seven rights issue at 102.0p per share, being approximately £52.3m, net of expenses, as announced on 17 December.

TRADING UPDATE


Connect Group PLC, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions; News & Media, Books, Education & Care and Parcel Freight, is today issuing its Trading Update covering the19 week period to 10 January 2015.


Total Group revenues decreased 1.5% year on year, with overall performance broadly in line with management expectations.

The performance of each division was as follows;

· Connect News & Media;News revenues decreased by 1.8% and like for like revenues decreased by 2.8% with both newspaper and magazine performance continuing in line with recent run rates. Pass my Parcel was launched as planned and continues to be rolled out to new stores. Media revenues increased through new contract wins by 5.2% with like for like revenues up by 0.4%.

· Connect Books; revenues decreased by 1.2% through increased focus on more profitable contracts as part of the recovery plan. Like for like revenues increased by 1.8% due to the continued strong performance of Wordery partly offset by the ongoing market pressures in the UK and internationally. Recent recovery actions continue to reduce costs and increase margins.

· Connect Education & Care;revenues decreased by 2.0% and like for like revenues decreased by 1.2%. Core revenues were up by only 0.6% as a result of a strong early peak trading period in the prior year. Education and Early Years channels continue to outperform the smaller Care channel and non-core revenues were down broadly in line with recent run rates.

· Connect Parcel Freight;on 19 December 2014, the Group completed the acquisition of Tuffnells Parcels Express, establishing the Parcel Freight division. The division has made a positive start with encouraging trading over the festive period and performance to date is in line with management expectations.


There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since 12 November 2014 following the publication of the Prospectus in relation to the acquisition of Tuffnells.

The Group will announce its interim results for the six months ending 28 February 2015 on 22 April 2015.

Appointment of New Chairman

Connect Group, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions; News & Media, Books, Education & Care and Parcel Freight, will be announcing its Interim results for the six months ended 28 February 2015 on Wednesday 22 April 2015.

A meeting for analysts will be held at 9.00am at the offices of Buchanan, 107 Cheapside, London EC2V 6DN on Wednesday 22 April 2015, with an audio webcast of the results presentation available thereafter.

Hopefully the interims will spark a bit of positive action in the share price. It has gone nowhere fast for the last eight months.

Ominous drop before tomorrow's interims!

Interim Results for the 6 months ended 28 Feb 15

Highlights:

· Underlying revenue up 1.2% and underlying operating profit up 3.3%
· Results include the successful acquisition of Tuffnells from 19 December 2014
· Strong free cash flow generating £16.0m, up 34.2%
· Underlying rebased EPS of 8.6p, down 5.5% as a result of the phasing of post-acquisition profits from the Tuffnells acquisition and rights issue shares
· Rebased DPS of 2.9p up 3.6%, reflecting confidence in the Tuffnells acquisition and ongoing Group prospects

· News & Media:
o Continued resilience of newspaper and magazine markets
o Developing the Pass my Parcel offer with Amazon and accelerating investment
· Books:
o Stabilised performance and assessing longer term opportunities
o Wordery continuing impressive growth
· Education & Care:
o Growth in core categories with strength in Primary and Early Years
o Investments being made to enhance customer proposition
· Parcel Freight:
o Continued strong sales and profit growth in post-acquisition period
o Integration and synergies on target

This has been looking very soggy of late. No reason that I can fathom. Nothing adverse has been announced. Another 'buying opportunity' by any chance? Certainly in the bargain basement category at these levels.

It is frustrating - I've also taken out a S/B on Tuesday @139.54.

Hopefully the Interims on 7th July will give some upside.

Trading Update

Total Group revenues for the 44 week period increased 3.1% on the same period last year, with overall performance marginally ahead of management expectations.

The performance of each division has been as follows:

· Connect News & Media:
o News revenues decreased by 3.4% compared with the same period last year with the benefit of new regional business offset by the absence of last year's World Cup sticker sales.
o Like for like revenues decreased by 3.5% for the 44 week period, comfortably within our medium term forecasts with newspaper cover price inflation strengthening and magazine performance continuing to improve.
o Pass my Parcel recruitment continues as planned with over 2,400 parcel shops recruited to date, up from c.700 at the time of interim results in April and keeping us on track to achieve our ambition of c.3,000 by the financial year end. We are continuing dialogue with potential new clients and the launch of further services.
o Media revenues increased by 1.9% as a result of new contract wins with like for like revenues decreasing 2.3%.

· Connect Books:
o Revenues decreased by 1.1% as we continue to focus on profitable sales. Like for like revenues increased by 2.3% for the 44 week period, showing improving momentum since the interim results.
o Performance has been driven by the ongoing recovery in Trade sales as management actions from the stabilisation plan take effect, alongside Wordery's continued impressive growth.

· Connect Education & Care:
o Revenues increased by 1.9% with like for like revenues increasing by 1.8% for the 44 week period, showing a stronger run rate since the interim results.
o Core revenues were up by 2.9% and growth continues to be driven by strength in Primary Education and Early Years.
o Momentum is building for the key peak trading period which has started in line with expectations supported by recent and ongoing investments in our new Warehouse Management System.

· Connect Parcel Freight:
o The division has continued its strong start within the Group and is ahead of management expectations, with total revenues increasing by 20.6% driven by market growth and new customers.
o Planned operational synergies identified at the time of the acquisition remain on track.
o As announced on 28 May 2015, Chris Ward was appointed Managing Director of the division, with effect from 29 June 2015.

There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the interim results announcement on 22 April 2015.

The Group will announce its preliminary results for the twelve months ending 31 August 2015 on 14 October 2015.

Interesting buys

09:52:14 145.00 276,000 O 141.50 145.75 Buy 593,347 24,946
09:52:07 145.00 276,429 O 141.25 145.75 Buy 317,347 24,946
09:46:22 145.75 455 AT 142.25 145.75 Buy 40,918 24,946
08:40:41 144.50 1,174 AT 142.25 144.50 Buy 40,463 24,946
08:40:41 144.50 600 AT 142.25 144.50 Buy 39,289 24,946
08:40:41 144.50 726 AT 142.25 144.50 Buy 38,689 24,946
08:34:52 144.50 1,994 AT 142.25 144.75 Buy 37,963 24,946
08:34:46 144.50 1,994 AT 142.25 144.75 Buy 35,969 24,946
08:34:22 144.50 1,994 AT 141.25 144.75 Buy 33,975 24,946
08:34:15 144.75 1,494 AT 141.25 145.25 Buy 31,981 24,946
08:34:15 144.75 1 AT 141.25 144.75 Buy 30,487 24,946
08:34:15 144.75 947 AT 141.25 144.75 Buy 30,486 24,946
08:27:02 145.10 5,000 O 143.25 145.75 Buy 29,539 24,946
08:26:57 145.00 1,362 O 143.25 145.75 Buy 24,539 24,946



Compared with "normal volumes".

An upgrade to buy from N+1 Singer - TP unchanged @150p.

Good volume today, but most of it accounted for by a 'put through' of 2x276,000 shares. Very disappointing price performance even considering the state of the wider market.

7 month high @166.50p - albeit on low volume.

Connect Group PLC, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions: News & Media, Books, Education & Care and Parcel Freight, will be announcing its Preliminary results for the year ended 31 August 2015 on Wednesday 14 October 2015.

A meeting for analysts will be held at 9.30am at the offices of Buchanan, 107 Cheapside, London EC2V 6DN on Wednesday 14 October 2015, with an audio webcast of the results presentation available thereafter.

This has gone nowhere all year. I'm hoping that the upcoming results will spark a bit of positive action. A return to 180 should be achievable if there are no nasties.

Preliminary Results year ended 31 August 2015

HIGHLIGHTS:

Strong performance with Adjusted profit ahead of expectations
· Revenue of £1,875.1m up 3.7% and Adjusted profit before tax up 13.0% to £56.5m, benefitting from the post-acquisition contribution from Tuffnells
· Adjusted earnings per share of 19.7p up 0.5%, reflecting post-acquisition profits from Tuffnells and impact of rights issue shares
· Free cash flow of £39.8m, up 7.0%; Net debt £153.4m; Net debt/Adjusted EBITDA (3) 1.9x, starting paydown from peak post acquisition debt level
· Final dividend of 6.3p up 5.0%, making a full year dividend of 9.2p, up 4.5%

Transformational year for the Group
· Scale acquisition of Tuffnells completed in December 2014
o Excellent early performance under Connect Group ownership
o Integration and synergies on track and creating new growth opportunities
· Launch of Click & Collect delivery service: Pass My Parcel
o Successfully accelerated rollout to over 3,000 stores
o Agreement in principle to launch new mobile enabled returns service with new client

Foundations in place for continuing growth
· Strategy on track with clear opportunities across the Group

Liberum Capital Buy 158.63 180.00 180.00 Reiterates

TRADING UPDATE & ASOS RETURN SERVICE LAUNCH

Connect Group PLC, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions; News & Media, Books, Education & Care and Parcel Freight, is today issuing its Trading Update covering the 19 week period to 9 January 2016. It is also pleased to announce ASOS, a leading online fashion retailer, as the second customer for Pass My Parcel, the Group's Click & Collect service.

Overall performance continues in line with management expectations with total Group revenues increasing 6.4% compared to the same period last year, including the benefit of a full period's strong contribution from the Parcel Freight division following the acquisition of Tuffnells in December 2014. Total Group like for like revenues decreased 2.3%.

The Group continues to make good progress with its growth initiatives. Pass My Parcel delivered an excellent operational performance over the peak Christmas period remaining on track with its current expansion plans. The launch of a mobile enabled returns collection service, with a QR (Quick Response) code sent to customers' mobile phones, is the next step in the Group's strategy to grow Pass My Parcel, having originally launched the Click & Collect service in October 2014 with Amazon as its first client. The Group today names ASOS as its second customer with an initial trial in 20 retail outlets to be rolled out across the remaining 3,000 outlets over the coming months.

The performance of each division was as follows:
· Connect News & Media: News total revenues decreased by 2.7% and like for like revenues decreased by 3.7%, with newspaper performance in line with recent run rates and magazine run rates continuing to improve. Media total revenues increased by 2.5% while like for like revenues increased by 1.8%.

· Connect Books: total revenues declined by 0.8%, while like for like revenues increased by 1.2%, through a sustained focus on more profitable contracts as part of the efforts to reduce costs and increase margins. Ongoing significant growth in Wordery and a good performance in Wholesale were offset by continuing tough conditions in UK Libraries and International markets.

· Connect Education & Care: total and like for like revenues both increased by 0.1%. Core revenues increased by 1.7% underpinned by strong growth in Early Years partly offset by performance in Secondary Education, with the division remaining focused on maintaining a strong gross margin.

· Connect Parcel Freight: total and like for like revenues both increased by 12.1% with continued positive market growth and new customer wins. The division's performance remains in line with management expectations, with strong growth under the Group's ownership.

There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the preliminary financial results announcement on 14 October 2015.

The Group will announce its interim results for the six months ending 29 February 2016 on 19 April 2016.

Peel Hunt Buy 167.88 174.00 174.00 Reiterates

Liberum Capital Buy 167.88 190.00 190.00 Reiterates

Unaudited Interim Results for 6mths ended 29/2/16

Highlights:

· Group performance in line with management expectations

· Adjusted revenue up 4.2%
· Adjusted profit before tax up 13.0%, driven by post acquisition profits and growth in Parcel Freight
· Adjusted EPS of 8.9p, up 3.5%
· Strong free cash flow generating £18.0m, up 12.5%

· The Group continues to make good progress on its strategic priorities
- Impressive revenue and profit growth in Parcel Freight
- Continued resilience in core News business
- Pass My Parcel growing customers, services and brand awareness
- E-commerce initiatives in Books and Education helping to offset currently challenging markets

· Ongoing confidence in Group prospects reflected in DPS of 3.0p up 3.4%

5yr contract extension with Northern & Shell

Regrets, I’ve got a few, but . . .

Trading Update

Connect Group PLC, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions; News & Media, Parcel Freight, Education & Care and Books, is today issuing its Trading Update covering the 20 week period to 21 January 2017.

Total Group revenues increased 0.2% compared to the same period last year, whilst total Group like for like revenues increased 0.6%.

The performance of each division was as follows:

· Connect News & Media: News total revenues decreased by 2.6%, and like for like revenues decreased by 2.3%. Newspaper and magazine revenues were both in line with our medium term expectations. Our ongoing cost efficiency programme facilitates continued investment in Pass My Parcel. Media total revenues increased by 8.7% while like for like revenues increased by 6.0%.

· Connect Parcel Freight: total and like for like revenues both increased by 5.2% in the period. The Group continues to make a sizeable investment in the Parcel Freight division, to establish a platform for growth through sales leadership, customer service and operational excellence. We anticipate a greater percentage of Tuffnells' full year profit to be generated in the second half than was the case last year.

· Connect Education & Care: total and like for like revenues both decreased by 4.6%. Core revenues decreased by 4.4% with increased revenues in Early Years being offset by difficult trading conditions in our other markets.

· Connect Books: total revenues increased by 14.3%, while like for like revenues increased by 15.1%. Strong growth in Wholesale and Wordery was offset by continued difficult trading conditions in our higher margin library markets.

The Group will announce its interim results for the six months ending 28 February 2017 on 25 April 2017.

26 Jan Peel Hunt Add 143.88 167.00 167.00 Reiterates

26 Jan finnCap Buy 143.88 196.00 196.00 Reiterates

26 Jan Liberum Capital Buy 143.88 170.00 170.00 Reiterates

Unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 28 February 2017

Highlights:

· Proposed sale of Education & Care, a significant milestone in the Group's strategy
· Robust continuing Adjusted profit, driven by a resilient performance in News distribution
· News distribution, on track to achieve £10m of efficiencies by FY2018
· Pass My Parcel - new returns services with Amazon and French Connection, and a contract with UK Mail for returns and 'failed household deliveries', expected to go live in the second half
· Parcel Freight revenue growth of 5.1%, helping support £1.5m of planned investment
· Good free cash flow generation after allowing for increased capital expenditure
· Leverage reduced to 1.8x with a further reduction to circa 1.2x on completion of the sale of Education & Care
· Interim dividend of 3.1p reflects confidence in the ongoing strength of the Group
· No change in management expectations for the full year performance

Peel Hunt Add 130.88 167.00 167.00 Reiterates

Berenberg Buy 130.88 185.00 185.00 Reiterates

finnCap Buy 130.88 200.00 200.00 Reiterates

Liberum Capital Buy 130.88 170.00 170.00 Reiterates

Peel Hunt Add 131.25 167.00 135.00 Reiterates

Trading Update

Connect Group PLC is today issuing its Trading Update covering the 45 week period to 15 July 2017.

Overall performance continues to be in line with expectations with a stronger second half from News & Media offsetting softer trading in Parcel Freight.

Total Group revenue for continuing operations of £1,497.5m (2016: £1,517.6m) has decreased by 1.3% year to date, a consequence of the anticipated decline of newspaper and magazine sales, offsetting revenue growth in our other markets.

The sale of the Group's Education & Care division to RM plc completed on 30 June 2017, for a cash consideration of £56.5m, delivering an Internal Rate of Return of 10% over the lifetime of our ownership. The disposal is a milestone in the Group's strategy to focus future investment on core operations, facilitating the transition to becoming an integrated specialist distribution business.

The Group has also maintained progress with key initiatives in its core markets:

News & Media

Sales in Smiths News remain in line with our strategic forecast; total revenue of £1,125.8m (2016: £1,173.7m) decreased by 4.1% with newspapers continuing to perform more strongly than magazines. Media total revenue of £24.7m (2016: £23.2m) has increased by 6.1%. Planned efficiencies of £5m in the year will be fully delivered, and a robust operational performance with ongoing cost control, is contributing to a strong second half. The new regional hub at Hemel Hempstead is operational and making good progress.

Parcel Freight

Total revenue of £157.3m (2016: £151.3m) has increased by 4.0% driven largely by price increases. Despite a successful spring peak for consignment volumes, market competition is limiting revenue growth, and the efficiency benefits from our investments in the business are coming through more slowly than anticipated. As a consequence, overall performance has followed the same trend as the first half of the year.

Pass My Parcel

Pass My Parcel's volume run rate has continued to increase, driven by a combination of core growth, new client partnerships and the development of additional services. Total parcels handled in June 2017 averaged 23,400 per week, up 149% on the same period last year. Customer service and operational performance has remained strong throughout.

Good progress is being made in leveraging the Group's capabilities in B2B final mile and early-morning delivery, attracting a growing client pipeline with a range of service propositions. We expect our contract with UK Mail to handle returns and failed household deliveries to commence in 2018, following the implementation of supporting IT.

Books

Total revenue of £189.7m (2016: £169.4m) has increased 12.0% with continued strong sales in UK Wholesale and Wordery, offset by weaker sales in Libraries. The recent announcement of the Joint National Consortia framework agreement saw Dawson Books re-listed as a leading supplier, a strong result reflecting the quality of our offer; the framework agreement takes effect from 1 August 2017 for a minimum of two years. The first phase of new automated packing technology is now installed at the Norwich hub and contributing to efficiency savings that will help to mitigate future increases in the National Living Wage.

Integration

The Group's strategy for integration is focused on the delivery of cost synergies between News & Media and Parcel Freight, group overhead and structure, as well as providing a broader customer proposition leveraging the combined strengths of our two specialist distribution networks, creating additional growth opportunities. We will update the market on progress at the preliminary results.


There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the interim financial results announcement on 25 April 2017.

The Group will announce its preliminary results for the full year ending 31 August on 26 October 2017.

finnCap Buy 105.50 187.00 187.00 Reiterates

Peel Hunt Add 106.00 135.00 135.00 Reiterates

JP Morgan Cazenove Overweight 116.25 152.00 144.00 Reiterates

Notification of Change in Director's Role and Responsibilities

Connect Group PLC is pleased to announce that Jonathan Bunting, previously Managing Director of the Group's News & Media division, will assume the role of Chief Operating Officer, with responsibility for operations across the Smiths News and Tuffnells businesses. This announcement follows the Group's recent confirmation of its strategy to bring together its News & Media and Parcel Freight divisions, together with supporting Group functions, into one integrated structure. The change will take effect from 1 September 2017.

finnCap Buy 111.88 187.00 154.00 Reiterates

Unaudited Preliminary Results Announcement for the year ended 31 August 2017

STRATEGIC HIGHLIGHTS:

· Focused strategy continues, concentrating on opportunities in Early Distribution and Mixed Freight
· Adjusted continuing PBT £48.0m down £2.4m, due to weaker performance in Mixed Freight
· Resilient trading in News offset by higher costs in Pass My Parcel
· Step change in the integration of Smiths News and Tuffnells
· Plans to deliver an initial £15m of savings over two years
· Sale of Education & Care for an enterprise value of £64.4m and net cash proceeds of £58.2m
· Books planned disposal expected in FY18
· Leverage (4) reduces to 1.2x and bank facilities renewed in October 2017 until January 2021
· Final dividend of 6.7p up 3.1%, making a full year dividend of 9.8p, up 3.2%

Mark Cashmore, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"In what has been a challenging year, we have concurrently managed a period of tough trading while refocusing our strategy, restructuring our leadership, and disposing of the Education & Care division.

A two-year transformation programme is underway, centred on a comprehensive integration of our core businesses, extending from leadership and central services through to the network and frontline delivery.

We are now wholly focused on opportunities in Early Distribution and Mixed Freight - and we are moving at pace with a transformation programme, to deliver a combination of efficiencies, service and organic sales that will underpin growth."

26 Oct finnCap Buy 99.00 154.00 154.00 Reiterates

Turned out nice :-)

JP Morgan Cazenove Overweight 107.88 144.00 145.00 Reiterates

Director buys a few.

(Better than selling a lot.)
27/10/2017

b)

Nature of the transaction

Purchase of 20,000 ordinary shares by a custodian on behalf of the administrator of Mr Bauernfeind's SIPP

Trading Update

Overview

Total Group revenue for continuing operations of £564.5m (FY2017: £584.9m) has decreased by 3.5% year to date, with the anticipated decline of newspaper and magazine sales more than offsetting revenue growth in Mixed Freight and Pass My Parcel (PMP). While overall revenue performance has been in line with our expectations, a combination of delays to contracts in PMP, weaker margins and market uncertainty in Mixed Freight, and slower than anticipated realisation of cost reductions from the Group's integration strategy in order to preserve current service levels, mean that we now expect full year adjusted profit before tax for the continuing operations to be in the range of £42m to £45m, with current dividend expectations underpinned by a continued good cash performance.

Early Distribution

Total revenue in News Distribution and Media (comprising Smiths News, PMP and DMD) was £500.4m, a decrease of 4.1% (FY2017: £521.7m), in line with our expectations.

Newspapers and Magazines

The overall sales decline of newspapers and magazines remains within our medium term forecasts, with newspapers continuing to perform more strongly than magazines. We do expect stronger magazine and sticker sales as we approach the FIFA World Cup in June 2018, enhancing margin in the second half of the year. The overall profit and cash from newspaper and magazine sales is performing in line with our expectations.

Pass My Parcel

Volumes in Pass My Parcel of 1.3 million units have grown 347% year to date, and we start the new calendar year with a run rate up 740% on January 2017. Overall, volume growth is in line with our plans and we are pleased with this aspect of progress, which demonstrates an increasing consumer awareness of PMP, and the range and availability of its services. Year to date revenue of £2.5m is up 222%, representing strong growth.

Despite these positive indicators, forecasted margins and costs have been adversely impacted because the primary driver of growth has been a rapid increase in lower margin customer returns through parcel shops, with further acceleration over the Christmas peak. Ongoing delays to the implementation of new contracts and the roll out of new B2B services means that the margin mix is unlikely to improve in the near term. As a consequence, we do not now expect full year losses from PMP to reduce from those incurred in FY2017.


Media

DMD media distribution to airlines and travel points continues to perform in line with our expectations.

Mixed Freight

External revenue of £63.9m (FY2017: £63.1m) increased by 1.3% with the volume of consignments up by 3.6% on last year.

Our desire to protect service levels in what remains a highly competitive market has required some of our forecasted cost reduction plans to be re-phased, and the national shortage of LGV drivers has also added cost and impacted efficiency of operations. Overall, the combination of cost headwinds and the increasing market uncertainty towards the end of the calendar year has had an adverse impact on profitability to date.

Actions to address performance shortfalls are underway, including the introduction of new organisational structures that will improve efficiency of operations and depot management. We are also restructuring our commercial functions and making investments in additional experienced sales capability to drive profitable growth and enable opportunities arising from the Group's integrated capability.

In January 2018, we appointed Stuart Godman to the Executive Leadership Team as Commercial Director. Stuart joins from DX (Group) plc, bringing a wealth of experience in Mixed Freight to the Group. He will play a key role in the commercial development of the integrated business, focussing in the first instance on driving margin growth in Mixed Freight and PMP.

Looking ahead, we are confident that our profit recovery actions are gaining traction, however demand remains uncertain. As a result, the medium-term outlook continues to reflect both risk and opportunity in the wider market.

Integration and business transformation

The Group continues to make good progress with its integration and business transformation strategy.

In light of market conditions, we have determined that the new structures and ways of working associated with the business integration require careful introduction so as to ensure that there is no impact in the quality of our service. As a consequence, we have revisited the time frames for realising initial savings; while we remain confident of achieving our £15m targeted efficiencies over two years, we now expect the weighting to be greater in year two of the plan.

Work on reviewing the Group's longer term network and operating model is continuing. The next phase of the review will determine the optimum network for greater efficiency and growth, providing a clear picture of additional savings and business opportunities of a fully integrated operation. We expect to have completed this work before the end of the current financial year.

There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the Preliminary financial results announcement on 26 October 2017.

The Group will announce its interim results for the six months ending 28 February 2018 on 1 May 2018.

We refer to our announcement of 21 December 2017 that we had signed an agreement ("SPA") to dispose of our Books Division to the listed pan-European mid-market investor Aurelius Equity Opportunities SE & Co. KGaA (together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, "Aurelius").

The disposal was conditional only on anti-trust merger approval from the German Federal Cartel Office which was subsequently received (as expected) on 17 January 2018. As a result, the SPA is now unconditional and under its terms completion is obliged to occur by 31 January 2018 at the latest.

Despite this, Connect Group has been notified by a letter received on Sunday 21 January 2018 stating, inter alia, that Aurelius Omega Ltd (the purchasing vehicle) "can no longer complete on the current terms (as we, the Directors of Aurelius Omega Ltd, can see no way of financing this transaction)". Connect Group has sought urgently to clarify Aurelius' position , including the legal basis, if any, upon which it purports not to complete on the transaction and we have reiterated in writing that Aurelius is legally obliged to complete the transaction on or before 31 January 2018. Further, Connect Group has reserved its right to pursue legal redress against Aurelius in light of this development.

Connect Group will make a further announcement in due course when appropriate.

This stock was on my possible list of buys for dividend yield. I'll have to think a litle harder now.

This and its former incarnation NWS has been one of my favourite SIPP shares in the past, but since October I've only traded it by S/B - last trade on January 3rd.

I'll keep watching......

The big green parcel machine..

https://www.sharesmagazine.co.uk/news/shares/almost-80m-of-connects-market-value-wiped-off-on-profit-warning
https://www.fool.co.uk/investing/2018/01/22/could-connect-group-plc-be-the-next-carillion/

Price has settled at 75p with dividend now 13%. Is it too good to be true.

I've been through the accounts this morning, read the interim presentation and have come to the conclusion the market is signalling significant attrition in the newspaper business. I can also see rising wages being an issue in the workforce, a competitive market.

It does have great free cash flow to support the dividend though and the debt at £80m would seem manageable based on EBITDA.

The question is how fast will the business decline versus how fast can the management adapt. The latest update suggests the transition is going slower than the management had hoped but is nonetheless not surprising given the scale of it.

I think 75p is a pretty good price but I'm going to give this one a miss for now and wait for a stupidly low price to arrive.

There seem to be a number of companies around like this which are long term cash cows in slow decline valued at what I perceive as at pretty good entry point. In this case rising wages worries me more than the slow attrition and I think it may go lower yet however irrational that may be.

Connect Group PLC is today issuing a Trading Update covering the period to 2 June 2018.

Headlines
· Overall performance since the Group announced its interim results on 1 May 2018 has been extremely disappointing, and the Company has materially reduced its expectations for full year profit before tax

· The Group has decided to close Pass My Parcel and wind down the associated Parcel Shop network

· The Full Year Dividend for FY2018 will be substantially reduced from that paid in FY2017

· As a consequence the Group is announcing senior executive changes

Reduced full year expectations
The Board has materially reduced its expectations for full year Adjusted profit before tax, as a consequence of:

· A material fall in volume and increased cost through Tuffnells peak

· Increased costs in Pass My Parcel

· Disappointing sales of World Cup related products in Smiths News

· Delays in realising planned cost savings across the Group

The details of the bad news here: http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=6009639

Berenberg comment:
"Connect Group has released a trading update this morning stating that a number of negative headwinds have transpired in the second half, resulting in a significant miss to the company’s earnings guidance for 2018E. The major components of this are a failed recovery in the Mixed Freight (Tuffnells) business, greater-than-expected losses in Pass My Parcel (PMP) and disappointing volumes of World Cup stickers sales. As a result of this announcement, we reduce our 2018-20E EPS forecasts by c30%. With lower earnings and reduced cash generation, the company has decided to substantially reduce its dividend payment. We assume an 80% cut to the dividend going forward resulting in a full year dividend of 4.4p in FY 2018E and 2p in FY 2019/20E. At the same time, management changes have been announced, with CEO Mark Cashmore to leave the business once the board has found a successor and Tony Grace to join the group as interim CFO. With the failure of the company to turnaround repeated poor performance in Tuffnells, as well as the departures of both the CEO and CFO, we believe the outlook and investment case for Connect to be unclear at present. We downgrade to Hold and reduce our price target to 40p."

Smiths News agrees new long term contract with News UK

Connect Group is pleased to announce that, following competitive tender, it has successfully renewed its long term contract with News UK, confirming Smiths News' current distribution territories within the United Kingdom through to July 2024. The contract secures revenues of c£200m p.a. (at current values).

News UK is the United Kingdom's market leading national newspaper publisher with titles including The Sun, The Times and Sunday Times. This long term contract is an endorsement of Smiths News' leading service offer and efficient route to market for both publishers and retailers.

Mark Cashmore, Chief Executive Officer commented:

"We are delighted to confirm this significant publisher agreement for our newspaper and magazine distribution business. Visibility of future revenues underpins the ability of Smiths News to continue to deliver strong profits and cash. The contract is good news for the supply chain as a whole and positions the Group well to secure a similar outcome with our other publisher partners".

Peel Hunt Hold 31.53 - - Reiterates

Trading Update

Overall performance

In summary, trading in the period has seen a continuation of the challenging trends experienced throughout the year; as a result, the Group expects its full year trading performance to be below expectations.

Berenberg Hold 33.45 40.00 35.00 Downgrades