Now, this one was just awarded the Aim company of the year. Its a bit likeMears but it has a large GAS SERVICE section and the profits from this outfit would appear to be less healthy than from its Public Service arm. Does anyone have any knowledge of this company which is not cheap BUT could be on its way to making a lot more mazuma.

Although Connaught has been included in the Investor's Chronicle SUPER stocks, it COULD be coming time to sell

I am sorry to see that CNT attracts so little interest. I have held these for a few years, paying the equivilent of 55p (There was a 5 for 1 split a couple of years ago) and they have been very pleasing. Now around 4, give me 'boring' every time.

i shall merely bring this company to everyone's attention without further comment, other than to say i bought some the other day at 294

Because of this perhaps?
"Shares in support services group Connaught (CNT.L) extend Wednesday's gains, climbing as much as 4 percent on speculation of a possible bid from private-equity firm 3i Group (III.L).

Market rumours circulated on Wednesday, leading to Connaught's shares gaining 11 pence, from a near-record low of 291 pence.

"If someone admired this business...this share price could be a trigger (to make a bid)," says Paul Checketts at Oriel Securities.
Shares in Connaught have lost nearly a fifth of their value since it announced the resignation of its long-standing chief executive Mark Davies in January. [ID:nLDE60S0JV]

A tie-up between 3i-owned Enterprise, which provides infrastructure, maintenance and support services to councils and central government, and Connaught, which repairs and maintains social housing, is seen as a good match, say analysts.

"I could very feasibly see it as a joined up business," says Mark Fleetwood at Brewin Dolphin.

Reuters Messaging rm://lorraine.turner.reuters.com@reuters.net"

Broker note from Arbuthnot:
"We believe the 27% fall in Connaughts share price has been overdone. In our view, the factors which have prompted a reversal in the markets view of Connaught, are transient and do not alter the business underlying growth prospects. We are confident that the groups market positioning, in resilient growth sectors, will ensure continued delivery of double-digit growth. We also expect cash conversion to improve and these factors together should facilitate a re-rating of the shares. We believe the current price offers a good entry level. Buy."

Note from Collins Stewart:
"Connaught's bid for the Norwich social housing maintenance contract was
17.5Mpa, 5.5Mpa below the incumbent. A High Court judge imposed an
injunction to stop the transfer of work on the grounds that there was a
seriously arguable case that the Council had accepted an abnormally low
bid. Subsequently Connaught has signed a temporary contract which means
it will carry out work in Norwich until the injunction is resolved.
Due to a higher working capital assumption, our Quest Modeller derived
price target has reduced to 431p. Accordingly we cut our target price 7% to
425p, 12.0x CY2011 PE. Despite the fact this represents 40% upside we
retain a HOLD awaiting resolution on Norwich."

300p support broken

only 2 days late to mention that ..... well done sherlock!

One I was watching, but thankfully avoided. What the hell happened?
Some contract was presumably lost??? I also presume a knock-on effect with Speedyhire stock?
Or maybe takeover approach dead in the water?

sell note out from a big broker

You still in cynic?

Seem to remember this is always being recommended by the Telegraph which based on its recent record is bound to doom it.

i still hold some as assuredly there is a bottom to them somewhere, but if i want to free up funds, these would probably be the first to get the axe

Been through the news items for the past year and can see nothing to justify the fall. In fact, directors were buying up at around 315p after the first drop.

Umm .. the name of Worthington Nichols springs to mind when the CEO snapped-up shares at 110p which pushed-up the sp temporarily.

... and we all know what happened to them (and him for that matter!)

try this from 30 March.....

Shares in Connaught drop 6 percent, the biggest faller on the FTSE 250, after Charles Stanley Securities cuts its recommendation on the support services firm to Sell from Buy and reduces its 2011 earnings forecast by 20 percent.

"The CEO has departed, the shares have fallen sharply, a major contract is under an injunction, the outlook for public spending has deteriorated further, and we have reconsidered our view on the group's amortisation policy," writes analyst Matthew Earl in a note.

He says he sees more attractive opportunities elsewhere within the sector, notably Mears and May Gurney .

Yes I was just reading it on Selftrades site. In fact, from 310p the drop has been 20% which does look overdone.

Looks another example of where accounting practices can massage profit figures. I don't hold either, but it is much harder to massage the cash numbers and a quick look at the Cash Flow Statements for CNT and Mears for their last year's accounts shows big difference in cash generation. No prizes for which is stronger.

Broker note from Brewin Dolphin:
"Connaught has confirmed that a settlement has been reached which has allowed
it to begin work on a 5 year, 125m integrated services contract with Norwich
County Council. Work has begun under a short term contract with the permanent
contract due to begin on 8th April.
The settlement comes following an injunction brought by the incumbent provider and this news should draw a line under any ongoing uncertainty in this regard (and the distraction it has caused).
The statement also comments that trading continues to be in line with expectations. In this context, in our view, the recent share price weakness looks overdone and we expect upbeat Interims from Connaught (27th April) which should help rebuild confidence in the long term story."

It looked oversold to me so I took the gamble before Easter which fortunately has paid off.

I'm now out.

one day i'll actually manage to buy at the bottom instead of the top, but at least i am now pretty much b/e again, and i guess there's potentially quite a lot of upside

lol... your human after all cynic....join the club..

Bb LoL!
yep being human is "i wish i could get out of this at break even" and when our wish comes true we dont do it. i'm human too.done it loads of times.
regards
jkd

Update on Trading

TIDMCNT

RNS Number : 2866O
Connaught PLC
25 June 2010

?
Update on trading


Connaught has carried out a detailed analysis of its business in the lead up to
and following the Emergency Budget. The company has identified 31 contracts
within its Social Housing division where a proportion of the value relating to
capital expenditure has been deferred. This will impact revenue by around
GBP80m and EBITA by GBP13m in the current financial year. If this were to
continue we anticipate a reduction of revenue by GBP120m and EBITA by GBP16m for
financial year 2011. As a result we expect a one-off impact to our cash
conversion rate, reducing to around 40% this financial year.

The medium-term outlook for the business remains strong. As previously
indicated the company is undertaking a cost reduction programme. This is
expected to yield savings of at least GBP25m for financial year 2012. We have a
record bid pipeline of GBP5.3bn reflecting the trend towards larger, longer-term
contracts as our customers seek to address their budgetary restrictions.
Connaught is ideally placed to meet the emerging requirements of this market

Header needs adjusting, these have plummeted today, just goes to show with CNT, BP and other 'safe/boring' stocks, they are not oneway tickets.
2517

Buy order in around 180 for Monday :)

all companies dependant on goverment contracts (hand outs) are going to be adversely affected by the cutback in expenditure due to our huge deficit, thanks to brown and his cronies.

Shares in Connaught slumped after the social housing firm lowered its estimates for this year and next year because of the emergency budget.

The group said it has identified 31 contracts within its social housing division where a proportion of the value relating to capital expenditure has been deferred.

Shares in the company fell by nearly 30% after the announcement, which came not long before trading closed.

Connaught's revenues for this year will be around 80m lower and underlying profit will be down 13m, it said today. If the trend continues, Connaught expects revenues to reduce 120m for financial year 2011 and underlying profits down 16m.

As a result we expect a one-off impact to our cash conversion rate, reducing to around 40% this financial year, Connaught said.

The group added that the medium-term outlook for the business remains strong.

Broker KBC Peel Hunt said it anticipates moving its 2010 pre-tax profits estimate from 55 to 40m following the shock announcement.

glad i'm out of these, thought cannot remember if it was a small profit or loss at the time

It's falling off the edge.

strewth!

Any idea where the 'oversold' level is? 180p? Can't decide where the bounce will be.

Currently in auction for the 3rd time down 32.2%

harry - don't even think of trying to catch this one

just bought some lets watch it bounce later

kerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrchinnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggggggggggggggg

also in from earlier @ 136, happy to leave for a while.

splat - well done & gl

take any profit and run - very fast

Government cuts in public spending will dip CNT further downwards.
SELL at 150p.

cheers gibby, you still in?

CNT covered +11, looks like a drop into the close.

don't spend all 60p at once!

this one's really flying today - like a lead balloon

shame i lacked the cojones to short yesterday against the minor recovery during the day

Nevertheless, potential for a big bounce. Risky!

any trade positive is a gain cynic, I don't mind how many I get right mate.

quite so - as i have often said, a banked profit is a profit ..... and of course you mind how many you get right, or you'ld be living in a cardboard box

harry - you're bonkers! ... 10x safer to go long BP

Lots of upside Cynic. Wednesday 8th September St. Leger Festival Opening Day

Tabby lives in a council house, but maybe heading for a cardboard box when his disabled benefit is stopped.

an allusion to "sell in may" i assume

Not this year IMHO

Broker note from Panmure Gordon:
"Connaught gave a conference call yesterday where they announced that first signs of the issues leading to Fridays profit warning were seen in April. They provided further detail on this, cost saving initiatives and advised that the dividend policy remained unchanged.
Social Housing. Connaught chaired a lengthy conference call yesterday, where a wide range of questions were answered. They were keen to highlight that it was mainly only a section of Social housing revenues which has been impacted, namely stand alone contracts relating to capital spend such as kitchens and bathrooms, where the revenues had been deferred by Local authorities and RSLs
Cost Savings and dividend. A cost savings plan has been put into place to save a net 3m in 2011E, and 25m thereafter. The cost of implementation is taken above the line in 2011E. Connaught maintain that the dividend policy remains unchanged.
Forecasts. We amend our forecasts in light of this. We maintain our 2010E revenues at 690.7m, 724.8m in 2011E and 758.7m in 2012E. We maintain EPS at 20.7p in 2010E, but downgrade 2011E to 21.7p (previously 24.5p) and 2012E to 23.7p (previously 26.7p). We forecast net debt of 120.0m for 2010E.
Valuation. In view of the issues which were covered in the conference call we do not feel much more reassured. We feel that there is still much uncertainty surrounding the stock and we maintain our negative stance. We adjust our target price to 110p (previously 175p) and reiterate our Sell recommendation."

Sell, sell, sell CNT.

Breeden European Partners increase to 13.05%

hyleo is spot on if not already too late ..... Connaught in talks over additional funds

too late, the fair maiden cried in anguish

===============

looks like a huge amount of forced selling in hand too ..... at 22p or thereabouts, must be worth considering a for a quick trade

so i did ..... some at 24.0 and a few more at 24.5 ..... wait and see time

Sell sell sell..

far far far too late dear heart .... for myself, i shan't get greedy, or at least i hope i shall resist the temptation ...... anyway, even at NIL the loss would not be remotely disastrous

StockMarketWire.com
"Connaught is holding talks with lenders over additional funding.

The firm said the group had identified an urgent requirement for additional funds to meet the current and ongoing needs of the business.

It said this was caused, in part, by additional pressure from suppliers and sub-contractors.

Connaught said net debt will be significantly in excess of the previously advised level of 120m at its year-end on 31 August and that it will breach its banking covenants.

The group says it is undertaking a review of its current year trading performance and the implications this may have on its full year financial performance "

suspension looms?

possibly, but looked a reasonable quick punt to me, though could easily be wrong

That's what I said in my post at the end of June. Thank goodness you talked me out of it!

at least i did something for charity!

"I owe my success to having listened respectfully to the very best advice, and then going away and doing the exact opposite."
Gilbert K. Chesterton

I believe it could fall to 12p.

cynic are you still clutching the knife?

for the moment yes, though i accept it may well have been the wrong call, even if the
bid book remains longer than the offer ..... on the other hand, FOGL is heading back towards the southern basin again!

the gods are trying to look after me, for i'm effectively back at b/e
i wouldn't be at all surprised to see some pretty aggressive bear closing later on, which will suit me just fine

cynic or should we call you Gunga Din well done looking good!

thanks hali ..... very well in the money now, but monitoring carefully

=========

out at 29.95 with a very nice profit given the very few hours i was "invested" .... it may prove to be a bit premature, but i really don't care!

cynic yes be careful if you strip out goodwill, intangibles etc they have a negative net worth perhaps they paid too much for their acquisitions.Don't know how their lending banks hope to recover their exposure with sales declining rapidly, reminds us of Worthington(now MSS).

I'm still in from 19.8 and holding for now, but may not be much longer. Back in auction....

out after auction @ 33.1

appears to be premature!

Balls of steel or brains of a rocking horse - not sure which - but well done :-)

definitely the latter skinny! :)

now, where to short it....:)

Don't you mean he's hung like a budgie, Skinners?

:o)

Oh, well done Splatso.

ta hilarsky.

This has been a good short 4 me... but I think this has great potential of going up now...
So it's BUY time for CNT at 39p.

Now out

Broker Collins Stewart had it as a sell yesterday at 34p.

City watchdog launches probe into Connaught
LONDON | Tue Jul 27, 2010 5:29am BST

LONDON (Reuters) - The Financial Services Authority has launched a wide-ranging probe into social housing services company Connaught Plc, over several issues including a failure to provide potentially price-sensitive market data, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE66Q00320100727

HSBS has sold >6m of its holding and another company whose name i didn't recognise dumped their whole 1m holding

for myself, am happy to be short again

I took a small position today (short side). IMO any rescue deal will be that - priced as a 'rescue deal', in other words a huge debt for equity swap. I'll see this to single figures from this position.

will this affect Mears? i really dont wanna eat my hat. i may have to of course.
such is the market. anyway my boring stock is Booker. LoL is it headed same way? i have know idea.
regards
jkd

Post 83 & 84 tells me we could see a huge drop again todaytoo hot for me!

except that they have just secured funding, though it is only a stop-gap as you will see below .... why is it that other really worthwhile small/medium companies would be immediately shut down by their lenders? - no answers required i'm afraid

Agreement On Financing.

In its announcement on 26 July 2010, Connaught said that it was in constructive discussions with its lenders to secure additional funding. The Company is pleased to announce that it has now agreed with its lenders the terms of an additional 15 million, short term overdraft facility, together with deferral of interest and principal payments due on its existing facilities in July and August. The overdraft facility is available immediately. This facility will be in addition to its current facilities of 200.6 million.



Connaught will continue negotiations with its lenders in the coming weeks with the objective of securing, in due course, a restructuring of our financing for the longer term.

sticking plaster over a gaping wound, will add to short position, short term saved and long term finished.

for once you and i are pretty much in accord, though there'll be a big jump in sp this morning

jkd - re post 86. Look at the Mears announcements on the 25th & 28th of June.

missed a trick not shorting an awful lot more of these ...... not sure i'll have the time to do so in the morning before setting off for the airport to come home

looks like a "dead parrot" reportedly BARC has sold its exposure for 37% of its face value.

i saw that and hadn't realised what a (relatively) small value i had shorted ...... only obvious danger is if some dumb clutz decided to buy the company

cynic with all that debt and a negative NAV you would have to be crazy.

like a dumb clutz lol!
i may well double up my short in the morning, or at least that is the temptation even if done as a phone order with its obvious dangers

I think the sp is seriously heading south but I can't see this company going bust. I think it will ultimately find the finance.

Sir Roy is causing a big slide by his statement today and he sounds like Cheryl Cole in the last paragraph...




Connaught plc
("Connaught" or the "Company")

Review of Trading and Financial Performance

In its announcements of 26th and 29th July, 2010, Connaught said that it was undertaking a review of its current year trading performance and the implications this may have on its full year financial performance.

This now indicates that the Company will record a material loss at an EBITA level (including current year exceptionals) and will be no better than breakeven at an adjusted EBITA level for the current financial year to 31st August, 2010. At the same time we are reviewing the segmental presentation of the business.

In addition, the Company also anticipates making provision for future losses on current contracts in its results for the financial year ending 31st August, 2010.

In the context of its reviews, the Company also anticipates that it will make significant write-downs in respect of the carrying value of assets as at 31st August, 2009, the previous year end. This is before taking account of the impact of the ongoing assessment into the accounting policy for mobilisation costs.

The Company's review is continuing and further details will be announced in the preliminary results for the current financial year.

Sir Roy Gardner said:
"Further to my appointment as Chairman in May and my establishing a series of independent reports on the business, it is clear we face challenges in turning this Group around, but I remain both confident that this can be achieved and committed to seeing the process through.

"My focus, and that of the new executive team, will be to continue the plans for the refinancing of the Company for the benefit of all our stakeholders who have shown loyalty to Connaught over the years. The business remains committed to delivering excellent quality and service for our clients.

This is a business worth fighting for and my new team and I ask for your continued support for our efforts to rebuild Connaught."

was short a lump - in share terms - but only added 50% to that position this morning as was travelling .... what a shame, but that's just greed talking!

cynic well done they are looking good for adminisration.

thanks pal ... it's nice to make a good call sometimes

Not my type of punt. I dont like backing failurebut it looked a nailed on shortsingle figures are odds on nowpunters had plenty of time to get out in the 30s.no excuses left?

it's a WONDERFUL stock if you're short

tabasco/cynic - clubman is looking for you here.

???????? - where did that little pearl come from??????

banked this morning's foray purely out of prudence ...... shall look again on monday

Connaught took over the contract for city maintenance in Norwich from 'City works'. If you guys don't quit shorting this stock we ain't gonna get our bins emptied!

Connaught faces further losses.


The prospect of lenders seizing control of Connaught edged closer on Friday after the stricken property services group warned it would write down the value of its assets and make provisions for future losses on existing contracts.

The FTSE 250 company, which is chaired by Sir Roy Gardner and whose accounts are being independently audited by Deloitte, did not provide an explanation for the moves.

It comes four days after Barclays, a member of Connaughts syndicate of banks, sold its entire loan exposure of 19m for about 37 per cent of face value. Barclays look like theyve played a blinder, said Matthew Earl, Matrix analyst.

Lloyds Banking Group is also considering offloading its debt although no decision has yet been taken. A person close to the Bank of Ireland said that at present it had no plans to sell its exposure. Other members of the syndicate, which is led by Royal Bank of Scotland, include KBC, the Belgian bank, and Swedens Handelsbanken.

People close to the situation said that Connaughts mounting difficulties would make a rights issue difficult to execute and that a debt-for-equity swap was now the least worst outcome for shareholders.

Shares in Connaught, which had already dropped by about 90 per cent since a profit warning in June, lost almost half of their remaining value on Friday. They closed down 13.5p at 15.5p, giving the company a market capitalisation of 21.7m.

The sell-off came after Connaught, which specialises in social housing maintenance, warned it would make significant write-downs on the carrying value of assets as of the end of August last year.

Analysts have for several months raised questions over how the company accounts for its contracts.

However, Connaught said on Friday that the write-downs would be before taking account of the impact of the ongoing assessment into the accounting policy for mobilisation costs.

Paul Checketts, analyst at Oriel Securities, said: I would guess that theyve realised that a lot of the contracts have been priced inappropriately and will therefore be loss-making.

Connaught also said on Friday that it now expected to post a material loss before interest, tax and amortisation in the year to August.

Analysts had previously expected earnings on an ebita basis of 45m following a profit warning in June, although several withdrew forecasts in recent weeks due to the mounting uncertainty.

Bankers last week granted the company a vital short-term 15m overdraft facility after Connaught warned it was in urgent need of additional funds as suppliers and sub-contractors had put pressure on the companys cashflow.

Sir Roy said in a statement on Friday that the group was continuing to hold refinancing discussions.

Connaught said in its original profit warning that 31 contracts had been affected by local authorities budgetary pressures.

this is becoming more and more a no-brainer, though by monday it may become almost impossible to open new short positions

My 12p is getting closer.

You have achieved your target, mitzy.

Down another 30% this morning hlyeo.

Edit.. 9 p.

lovely jubbly!

File for bankruptcy soon?

more likely debt for equity, leaving shareholders with best part of FA - as with eurotunnel .... or at least that is my biased expectation (hope!)

From 460p to 10p... lack of diversification is the cause of this collapse.

rubbish ..... diversification away from core business has been the undoing of many a company

meanwhile, sp is all over the shop .... hmm! what to do?

nonsence, sp is not all over the shop, it's just a kamikaze dive!

you have clearly only just woken up then ..... sp opened at about 9.25 and moved in spasms and jerks and twitches to about 12.75 but has drifted since ..... in % terms that's pretty hefty volatility

huge volume today (10x normal) with two way traffic for obvious reasons ..... offer book has been pretty consistently and significantly longer for most of the day - currently 11.01/11.14

You are obviously glued to the screen all day long...get a life.

my life, not yours ..... amazingly, i can multi-task

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1301677/Connaught-talks-creditors-led-RBS-future.html

thanks gibby .... transcript below

Connaughts lenders were last night preparing to take control of the beleaguered council house maintenance firm, as it emerged they have drafted in KPMG to advise them on how best to recoup their loans.
The company was locked in talks with creditors, led by Royal Bank of Scotland, in the hope of securing a so-called debt-for-equity deal - an agreement that would see its bankers dropping some or all of its debts in return for ownership of the business.
But although the banks are seriously considering such a deal, analysts said they would also be considering whether they would be able to get more money, more quickly, by selling off part of Connaught or allowing it to go into administration.

meanwhile .... though sp LOOKS a little steadier, be aware that offer outnumbers bid 2:1, so do not be surprised to see a further collapse in due course (wishful thinking?)

cynic - ditto mate

do you have L2? ... if so have a look ..... surely a classic indian rope trick (whoops! is that racist??)

i do - will take a look - cheers

nasty MMs etc putting on a bear squeeze today!
still, i'm happy to ride that out for a while as i cannot see CNT coming back from the brink and have an average cp of 20 + slab of profit already banked, so still happy

mms - exactly! & pleased to hear you have already banked a profit - i made a good profit when still over 1 - then left cnt for a while - thankfully missed the latest crash - nearly bought early this morning today at around 10p but i bottled it!! never mind - not sure what way this will go still feel debt for equity swap out - also cnt customers (local authorities & housing associations) have been approaching other companies such as morgan sindall to take over cnt contracts - interesting times ahead to say the least - hope you make some more here - gl

Where is this going?? up or bust??

imo - bust or next best thing

well that fucked up nearly all my juicy profit, but hey ho

Classic traders beating each other up .great for gamblerstoss of a coin!!!

good luck to the brave ones in - i am out now - still see this going bust imo or at least ownership passed to lenders - one glimmer of hope is that apparently cnt are in talks with lenders maybe pushing the sp up for the gamblers - not unlike ray marine situ imo

looking like one-way traffic again ..... still plenty of money to be made on short tack, but then i would say that wouldn't i!

short - yep - lol

imo cnt might as well put the closed for new business correction any business right now

they have lost according to reports a meagre 250M contract with I think Norwich council forgotten how many years that was for / they need more than some redundancies to save 'em i'm afraid

still does not mean cnt will not provide opportunities as cynic hinted on!! gla

last post - actually losing norwich council contract is just a rumour i am informed- i want to correct this - norwich council have made contingency plans to have the 250M 10 year contract to be completed by other supplier/s if / when cnt go belly up - apologies just want to be more accurate - i can rest easy now!! gla

barnet council i have been told are winding up thier 7M / year cnt contract 13 months early -could this be the start of the end of cnt prior to a potential break up - interesting the director buy ins though recently - WHY???!!! - gl

possibly a precondition by lloyds that the directors put out their own money with the begging bowl

cynic directors buying shares in the market does not help the company's financial position. Can't see any RNS that they have.

no, but the bank may have wanted some "hurt money" on the table

cynic if directors have bought shares a RNS should be issued by CNT.

i think cnt may need to pass the hat round!! if it is true their drivers have had to pay cash for supplies from the few merchants that will still supply them at over inflated prices - and that last sentence about cnt drivers paying merchants themselves is not my words but what i have read on other bbs some saying they are current cnt employees - i can not say whether true or not - passing the hat round is my opinion!!!!

Hey Tabby , no worries if your beloved stock keeps going up mate you can buy us all a drink. Pity about your team though :o)

OOps wrong thread, thought it was Blinx.

Wonder if it's soon time to hold a little of this stock???

18p & rising!

Is this company going bust as everybody has said or is still worth a go???????

I was about to say yes, it's worth a go, when it promptly dropped 12%. Worth trading, imo, but not yet a hold.

a short's not a bad hold!

Social housing group Connaught 'nears administration'

Connaught, the property services group that specialises in social housing, is on the brink of going into administration, the BBC has learned.

An announcement is expected later, BBC business editor Robert Peston said.

Connaught, which employs 10,000 people, has 220m of debt, provided by six banks and a quartet of other creditors.

Connaught ran into serious difficulties over the past couple of months, after it emerged that a series of contracts would be loss making.

Suspended.

it's dead! ..... RNS says no money forthcoming ...... hope none of you guys are long here

"On 29 July 2010, Connaught announced that it had agreed the terms of a short term overdraft facility. Since that date Connaught has had continuing discussions with its lenders and other sources of finance with the objective of securing additional funding and a restructuring of the Group's financing for the longer term.

The Group now believes that the availability of additional funds from its lenders will not be forthcoming and, whilst it remains in discussions with other parties, the ability to provide an adequate solution to the funding issues the Group faces has become increasingly uncertain. Accordingly, pending clarification of the Company's financial position, Connaught has requested a suspension of the trading of its shares on the London Stock Exchange with immediate effect."

The only winner here is EK.

And the loser is dealerdear.

EK et moi! though in a relatively modest way, but assuredly not to be sneezed at

Inevitable it would collapse at the end and plenty more to follow I reckon.

.

(s)he only buys in lumps of 100 so of questionable value ..... u might however like to take a peek at SCHE for a gamble in one direction or another

May be Mears and Rok will benefit to some extent from the demise of CNT.
2517

Hi mnamreh.... none that come to mind except Cosalt which is adead cert for administration imo.

Excuse me, I don't hold milly.

I did say I would be surprised if it went into admin but there was no way I'd take the chance and trade it.

Fair enough dealer.

.

I love the title of this thread ;-)

Another one bites the dust...

S
be fair, that was 4 tears ago. a lot can happen.and obviously did and has.
h98.
hope i aint next with mine.the boring one that is.must keep those stop losses going and reviewing.its still no guarantee but it does help. in my opinion.
regards to you both.
jkd
Addendum: see my post no.22 page 2 ref the need for discipline in using stop losses.
i still succumbe on occasions although i should know better. getting better though. LOL

I actually agree about Cosalt which is sounding alarm bells but that wont stop
punters chasing them.

Makes you wonder why people chased Connaught when there's cash rich no debt
stocks trading on multiples of under 5, plenty of them as well.

Acquisition of social housing contracts from Connaught

Morgan Sindall Group plc ("The Company" or "Morgan Sindall"), the construction and regeneration group, today announces that its Affordable Housing division, Lovell Partnerships ("Lovell"), has reached agreement to acquire the majority of the ongoing contracts and their related assets of the social housing division of Connaught plc, allowing essential maintenance services to continue without interruption. Around 2,500 employees connected with the ongoing contracts will transfer to Lovell as part of the agreement.

A total cash consideration of 28m has been paid for the assets, which represents a discount to their net book value. The payment has been made from the Company's existing cash resources. At 30 June 2010, Morgan Sindall had net cash of 138m and the Group will continue to have a strong financial position following the acquisition.

The acquisition is consistent with Morgan Sindall's long-term strategy to achieve leading positions in its chosen markets. The acquisition will significantly enhance Lovell's market leading position in the affordable housing sector and creates a national, full-service business delivering planned and reactive maintenance as well as new-build social and open market affordable housing. The new contracts are expected to generate approximately 200m of additional annual revenue, split broadly between response maintenance contracts and Decent Homes, planned maintenance contracts.

A result for them then.

won't make any difference at all to unsecured creditors

Who cares so long as most of the jobs are saved !

very altruistic of you

Well banks are making billions again so they wont miss the money they
lost, all that matters is the jobs, shareholders should have realised what
was coming and cut their losses and ran, hats off to the co-op, they seem
to be on the ball in more ways than one.

sorry to be (no i'm not at all sorry!) so attached to mammon, but CNT's sp valued a ZERO suited me very well indeed .....

however, i hear through the ether than some s/b company (NOT IG) closed everyone's position at the last traded price (about 16p) ..... totally unbelievable if true, as of course those who were long are splitting their sides with laughter and those who were short are spitting nails

But why do s/b Co's not close out all positions where a company has gone into administration &/or it's shares have been suspended? Like the equity holders who may be sitting on worthless stock, cfd/sb traders are also open to the same risk?

because the positions cannot be physically closed ..... for example, the sp in CNT is now NIL, but the short position cannot be officially closed until such a time as the administrator has made a formal announcement (or similar) that there is nothing left for unsecured creditors .... at that point, i can physically bank my gain, or in the case of a long holder, his loss is then crystalised

Ah, I see. In that case there is presumably a risk for the shorters that the sp may open considerably higher if there is a favourable takeover or bailout?

in theory you are absolutely right, though in practice that is pretty much inconceivable

to support my post 179 ...... totally immoral! .....

from Tom Winnifrith .....

I am told that SB clients of CMC who were/are short of Connaught are to be settled at the close of business today at 16.65p. Apparently, there is a rule in their terms of business which declares that settlement is not to be at the eventual make up price but the suspension figure.

I cannot argue with their rules on behalf of those who accepted them. But this rule is absurd and it means that investors should steer well clear of CMC. After all, if one shorts, one takes the risk of losing on the upside and one does so to collect the downside. If the downside is denied at the crucial moment, there is no point in opening the short.

It depends where you open the short :-)

front fly opening! ...... that weasel clause of CMC's is totally disgusting and i'm amazed they are allowed to get away with it ..... i wonder if any of the por bastards who were caught out will challenge it under "unfair contract" or similar

lol.

My gut reaction would be that if it's in clearly documented rules, then the punter has no legal path to claim. However, that won't do CMC's reputation much good & they may realise that is more important.

my guess is that CMC will make a killing out of it

cynic have you seen their book?

nope, but whether they do or not, it's a downright scurrilous and unprofessional way to act

always read the small print.

as always, you're right, but it's probably tucked into the agreement somewhere and in very small type ...... i believe the City in general is pretty appalled, though whether or not the poor buggers who got hit have any recourse is another matter ...... that said, those with long positions will be very happy indeed - unless there's another weasel clause that will stop those guys encashing same at 16.25p

Social housing contractor Connaught collapsed this week. But an email has emerged showing the arrogance that existed at the company in the run-up to its failure.

Five months ago the company's then boss bragged in an email to staff that Connaught would soon be one of the best employers in the country. [Read the full story]

Here, we publish that email, written by former chief executive Mark Tincknell, in full below. Here are some of the highlights:


Dear Everyone

You may have noticed more press speculation and a further reduction in the share price this week. This is as a result of a fundamentally flawed and very mediocre analysts note which simply repeated unfounded rumours and nonsense from the past, whilst getting the numbers wrong at the same time. A masterful feat of incompetence.

However, the City is sensitive at the moment due to a potential change of Government and the tightening of the public purse. As a result there has been an over-reaction which has seen the share price fall.

It is also possible that the analysts note was influenced by those who are short in Connaught. By this I mean certain hedge funds have bet that our share price will reduce and therefore it is in their interest to influence third parties to take a negative view towards us. Doesn't seem right does it?

I think we all have to remember that this manipulation of our share price is therefore not a true representation of the underlying value of our business. Connaught is in good shape and we are well supported by the vast majority of our major shareholders and the analyst community. In this respect l attach a short note from KBC which was issued this morning supporting us.

We had a meeting of the management board yesterday which was upbeat and confident and whilst we realise there are things to fix we are "on to it". We are taking advantage of all the opportunities the market presents us with whilst improving the business wherever we can.

We continue to invest heavily in our future. We have approval for a new 10 million financial and operational system and we are putting together a brand new 25 person big tickets sales team to take advantage of new public sector markets opportunities. This will include bid writers, transformational consultants, strategic business developers and proposition development mangers; all aimed at taking Connaught to the next level.

In addition we have also brought in a one Group and 3 Divisional HR Directors. They are targeted on having Connaught included in the Sunday Times best companies to work for list by at least 2014.


On a personal note, I would also like to add that in the 28 years since Connaught started I've never been so confident about our future prospects. We have never had the calibre of management that we have in the business today and they will be making a tremendous impact in the forthcoming months. I believe the public sector market provides us with a once in a generation opportunity.

Any talk about Connaught being bought also remains complete nonsense - you can tell I like the word nonsense - the share price would have to halve from its current level for this to become even a remote possibility and therefore is very doubtful indeed. We have never been approached by anybody in this respect.

I hope you and your families have a great Easter, rest assured that regardless of what is convenient for certain elements in the City to think, we are in good shape and have a very interesting and positive future ahead of us.

Please feel free to pass this e-mail on to family and friends who may have an interest in Connaught and to colleagues who may not be connected to the network.

Kind regards,
Mark Tincknell

Cynic.

I dont spread bet thesedays, i find them as borderline crooks and myself had
a bad experience (show me somebody that has not).

This company you mention if i'm not wrong is failing to pay out on shorts on
a stock that is worthless then ?

That means you could search for a company they offer prices that is on the
brink of going bust, you go long and by miracles they pull through and you make
a real killing or it gets suspended and you get your money back, is that right ?

Sounds really bad to me but i have 0 respect for spread betting firms and their
unique "suits them" rules !

i use IG (for CFDs) and have never had cause to complain ..... indeed, i find them very helpful indeed

This is one of EK short tips also Pure

EK bought his back from someone "privately" at 0.5p .... at least he won't have to wait a potential eternity to get paid out .... i shall, but it's still money in the bank, so not unduly fussed

Did you get your money back in the end Cynic?

not yet ..... the juicy profit stays "in abeyance" until the administrator advises that unsecured creditors (shareholders) will get nothing ..... this can take quite a long time as Northern Rock position has still not been clarified, though that was a much more complex scenario

Is this one de-listed now..?

Yes - on the 5th.

Thanks.

depends on why the question .... what are you trying to determine?

Just wanted to be sure.

if you're asking for CGT purposes, then you may not have asked the right question

The scale of debt at Connaught, the collapsed property services group, will be greater than previously thought after administrators found 50,000 invoices that the company had not accounted for. Management accounts had led administrators from KPMG to believe that the social housing maintenance arm of Connaught owed 46m ($75m) to unsecured creditors, on top of the 22m to HMRC, the FT reports.

so the company is either bankrupt or bankrupt then ..... i just wish the administrator could/would hurry up and confirm officially that unsecured creditors will get zilch ..... until then, my juicy gain from my short cannot be truly realised, though it stays to my credit ..... more importantly, i wonder how HMRC treats these situations

18 months since this company went bust, the company which then took over the Norwich environmental waste service, Fountains, has now also gone to the wall!!! Seems like waste management isn't an easy business.