From the TELEGRAPH

Lloyds to auction HBOS company stakes

Llloyds Banking Group has stepped up its efforts to offload its shareholding in more than 60 of Britain's largest companies including coffee chain CaffNero and David Lloyd Leisure, the health and fitness group.

UBS, the investment bank, is working on plans to auction the stakes, inherited from HBOS. The combined value of the investments have more than halved to 600m since last June. The auction process could begin in July, City sources told The Sunday Telegraph.

A number of potential financial bidders are understood to have expressed an interest in the stakes, which range from Polypipe, a pipe manufacturer, to Sunseeker, the yacht builder, as well as a number of smaller companies such as Aberdeen-based oil industry specialist Red Spider Technology and Leaseway Vehicle Rental.

The integrated finance division's larger real estate investments, including retirement home builder McCarthy & Stone and Crest Nicholson, are not part of the planned UBS auction.

Neither is the bank's 8pc stake in Sir Philip Green's Arcadia Group, which is held outside the division. Sir Philip said on Sunday that he had no plans to buy back the stake. "They are quite happy with me. Why should I buy it?" he said.

Lloyds has wanted to sell the equity stakes since it acquired HBOS in September and has sought advice from both
NM Rothschild and UBS. HBOS had previously paid UBS to assess private investor interest to acquire part of the portfolio.

The sale process concerns some of Lloyds' largest corporate customers, which had relied upon HBOS to provide a wide range of debt and equity banking services. Some had HBOS executives on their boards. Eric Daniels, Lloyds chief executive, has said there would be no "major wrenches" as part of the sale process. "We are going to be very careful," he said.

Last week, Lloyds announced that the former HBOS integrated finance, joint ventures and fund investment operations would "no longer be open to new business''.

Balerboy

re - He must be really bored.........

Threat your words with care, there are posters that do the research and others that just take it IN ( you could very easy be one of them just being lazy).

For the last 9 years I have been opening a Weekly thread somewhere else, so I keep myself busy over there, where I keep in touch with the rest of the Financial World not just LLOY.

This week thread..............

SHARES STRONGLY UP week starting 26/05/09 (UPS)

And as a lat comment I will add, I can give you a lesson on dancing for FREE, if you change you nickname to - Balletboy


                               

"For the last 9 years I have been opening a Weekly thread somewhere else"
Please go back there, permanently.

PUSSYCAT

I am there that is the last recomendation to make you boil to the point of explosion, but do not get sick yet
there is no hopital bed left for you at your area.

PHTM 14.75p

Reason: Share bouncing from 200 days MA with volume last Friday after retracement. Ex - CEO have increased stake to 22%
and 2 weeks ago got back to the board. Shareholders equity was 24p on last statement and gearing reduce to 33% from 57%.

PUSSYCAT

A got a remedy for you irritation " Stinging nettles " your psycho-sexual implications could be satisfied well,
and you could make a "cup of tea" with the left overs. When dried, the leaves make a damn good tea, with a rich,
indescribable flavor, nettles pack a powerhouse of vitamins, minerals, and are perhaps the vegetable with the
highest protein content (10%).

Here is someone with my ideas on last Saturday Times

From The Times -- May 23, 2009

Black horse shares can ride out storm.

But should investors take their little purse of monies and run? Hindsight shows that investors would have been better off ignoring the received wisdom on previous occasions, and shunning previous calls. Thoughts now might turn to piling in when everybody seems to be wanting you to do the opposite.

Why should investors subscribe for the new shares? Because it is possible to see recovery coming, and having endured so much financial pain it seems right to grab as much of the upside as possible. You could take 250 now. But if things continue to settle, that 250 could become 500 in as little as 12 months.

The Government is doing shareholders a substantial financial favour. The 4 billion raised by Lloyds will be used to repay preference shares, bought by the Government, that were issued only relatively recently. Because the preference shares are counted as debt, their existence weakens the Lloyds balance sheet. Shares aka equity count on the other side of the ledger so an equity-for-debt substitution does the books a double favour. Lloyds, moreover, is on the hook to pay 480 million a year in dividend interest on the preference shares. If they are replaced with ordinary shares, that drain disappears. It also means that the company will resume paying dividends on ordinary shares sooner rather than later. And while the Government is reclaiming its 4 billion of preference-share cash, it is reinvesting nearly half that sum back by buying new ordinary shares. In the process, it is set to maintain its 43 per cent shareholding in the bank.

If Lloyds can keep its act together, it will emerge as a powerful player in the financial services sector. That brings the risk it will become complacent, and idly fail to win the big operating cost advantages that are in the offing. In time, also, competition authorities may seek to dilute the monopolistic power it might enjoy. But that is not something shareholders necessarily have to fear, especially if division comes through demerger. Who knows, the black horse bank, a lumbering old faithful, could deliver one, or more, lively foals.

There is, of course, no certainty that new dosh invested will grow in value, while there is a calming certainty about taking cash when it is offered. Lloyds continues to mutter darkly about the state of the lending markets, and its bad debts, while doubt hangs over the exact cost, and extent, of the government-backed debt insurance scheme the crucial government asset protection scheme, or, to use its alarming acronym, the Gaps. Meanwhile, European authorities might throw a spanner in the works with rulings about unreasonable and unallowable, state aid. And the resignation this week of Sir Victor Blank, the chairman, while not unduly worrying, is hardly an indication of internal management strength.

And OK, so the banking sector recommendations in this column over the past 18 months are not blemish-free. It has been suggested that investors should support cash calls in the past, and it is true that shares could have been bought at substantially better subsequent prices. That said, analysis in this space at the time of the Lloyds-HBOS link, which suggested the deal was good for HBOS as it ensured its survival and bad for Lloyds as it saddled the black horse with a beastly burden stands the test of time. And as long as the banks do not go belly up, time may also prove that investors were right to provide them with the help. There was always a social responsibility to be met. Eventually, it may bring sound financial reward. Subscribe in full.

LLOY will be under investigation for HBOS dodgy loans. Vince Cable will expose a closet of skeleton.

see news.

Continue to SELL LLOY.

whats it to do with vince?

anyway, eople will do their own thing.....as i say most people are not on these boards, anyway the taxpayer owns 43 per cent, doh.

see hyleo wasnt on this on friday when it was up! hyleo is unethical and immoral which is what is wrong with capitalism.....if these people dont change soon, then communist system is inevitable as theres lack of money in western world.....WESTERN WORLD!

YES..........
They only come out of the woods on the marky days.
Anyway the FTSE is down a good 40 points so nothing to worry about those " NASTY PIECE of WOOD " spreading rumours and inuendo

For those that had a taste of my selection then they are on the money OK

PHTM
on the move with the spread of 15.50 / 16.25p +1.25p the last UT was at 15p
5 days chart

That is most likely the way of my thinking .... ........

From the INDEPENDENT - yesterday

Business confidence is returning, poll suggests

Although the economy remains deep in the worst recession in 75 years, further evidence emerges today that somebusiness confidence is returning - usually a reliable indicator of an eventual recovery, if not necessarily an especially vigorous one.

The latest quarterly survey of business professionals, compiled by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, suggests that there has been a return of confidence among those shell-shocked by the collapse in demand since the economy stopped growing a year ago. The poll has registered declines for the past 18 months, but is now showing an improvement in the banking, finance and insurance sectors and the property market.

One in five business professionals questioned are still much less confident about the next year, indicating the recovery may be some months away.

Michael Izza, chief executive of the institute, said: The rise in confidence is a positive step. The underlying data suggests that companies have heeded warnings, taking the right steps to ensure their businesses are positioned to survive the downturn.

Mr Izza added: While the change in outlook is encouraging, I still believe that difficult times lie ahead. I would urge businesses to not be complacent and be measuredinany steps they take in response to an economic recovery.

Sentiment improved across all UK regions and counties for the first time since the survey began in 2003. The West Midlands saw the largest increase, which is thought to be a result of recent measures to help the auto industry, such as the scrappage scheme.

The North of England remains the least confident region, the researchers found. More than 1,000 chartered accountants were questioned for the study.

gone short..target 38.5p

re - gone short..target 38.5p

At you peril, must be the reason of the share price loosing 0.05p since, by you 5 bet.

FTSE now down 60 points from earlier 40 points

From another place ( LLOY thread ) but goes well also here I suspect
posted by " easwara " ..........

too many people want it to fail. basta**rds

The FTSE is recovering fast and LLOY is bouncing along the 66+ now.

But PHTM is doing much better 16.75 / 17p +2.25p

for those with bad temper posters, learn a lesson from the Master ( he is well in touch with the Timing do not forget )

                        LUNCH TIME FUN

YES I am on top of the world LLOY is recovering from the low of the day now 66.80p and PHTM only UP 17% ( do not RUB it in )

It looks like the SHORTERS have PI##SS off

If you want respect from other posters..... this is not the way to do it....

hyleo is quiet, lol. he aint recovering anyway

Balerboy

re - If you want respect from other posters..... this is not the way to do it....

I do not need your repect, most of you are just useless on trading and on need of plenty of lessons, just pasive investors with a bit of banter.

Below maybe is the way you wanted "Balletboy"