Yes I know Im on holiday so Ill make it quick. Just had a phone call and an e- mail from a City pal of mine and hes drooling over this company. Hes a trust worthy chap and has given me some fantastic tips over the last 10 years.
Hes going on about it being a ten bagger, but I dont like that kind of talk, best to just see how the market rates it. He says theres going to be a lot of news flow so that should provide for a momentum driven price. Have to say I have never known him quite so excited about a stock. Ive just gone in and bought a nice holding.

Heres the e-mail he sent me. It might be worth your while having a dabble. Citywire seem to think its going to be a hit.

Health minnow makes strong return to market
Published: 11:51 Wed 22 Oct 2003
By Joanne Wallen, Associate Editor
Email to a friend


The chief of Healthcare Enterprise Group sold his last business to private healthcare firm Bupa and he's now raring to go again; the business may be worth a second look.

Shares in the 24 million AIM-listed business were suspended in August pending a couple of key acquisitions, and returned to the market on Monday after the deals were announced.


Healthcare Enterprise Group (HCEG) (HCEG) paid a total of 11.5 million for the Safa Group and Industrial Pharmaceutical Service (IPS) as well as a 60.7% stake in SafaTec. The company raised a total of 10 million via a placing of shares at 1p to fund the acquisitions and also took on 3.5 million of bank debt.


Chairman Stuart Bruck, who previously founded private medical services business Barbican, which he sold to Bupa in January 1999, is hoping to build a significant business providing medical services to corporate customers. He is hoping to be a consolidator in what he told Citywire is a very fragmented market.


Both Safa and IPS provide first aid kits, training, first aid suites and a host of other medical and occupational health services to large corporate customers such as British Airways, Marks & Spencer, BT, Sainsbury and government procurement agency OGC. Both companies also have advanced 'replenishment systems,' which enable companies to maintain adequate supplies to satisfy UK health and safety legislation.


Bruck said these acquisitions would provide a 'platform' for further acquisitions.


The company had previously accrued minority stakes in a total of 14 small healthcare services companies in the UK and the US. In March it listed on AIM by reversing into a cash shell.


Bruck said the minority stakes offered it an entry into the market, but the company has now decided to focus on wholly operating and owning businesses. It has therefore identified four of its US businesses that it would like to buy the remaining stakes in. These are all within a two hour drive of the company's Los Angeles office, and would be run from there.


The company has also 'packaged up' the remaining eight businesses with a view to selling each of its minority stakes. Bruck said the pricing being talked about is already ahead of the indicative pricing given in March.


Safa and IPS apparently already have a 30% share of the corporate medical services market in the UK. They are both cash generative from operating activities. Both companies are based in the North of England and do not have a huge penetration in London, where Bruck believes the company has 'a huge opportunity.'


He reckons they have so far penetrated around 50% of the FTSE 100, and therefore have a 'great client base' to which they should be able to sell additional services.

SafaTec has interests in a number of early stage companies that have developed some innovative healthcare products and technologies, which the company is hoping to commercialise. For example, Safa has secured a sole international distribution agreement with Ebiox, a manufacturer of a unique decontaminant and cleansing product range based on a patented formula. SafaTec UK has a 35% interest in Ebiox and HCEG is negotiating to acquire a controlling interest for the enlarged Group.


Bruck does not expect to make any more major acquisitions in the next year or so, but thinks there are a lot of small players that the company might be able to mop up.


'This is very exciting, I am looking forward to digging in,' he said.


Shares are currently at 1.7p.


Citywire Verdict:


The corporate healthcare market is becoming increasingly regulated, which favours HCEG. Bruck's track record should also be worth buying into.


The corporate structure looks pretty complicated at present with all of the minority shareholdings, but Bruck now seems keen to get the point quickly where HCEG controls the majority of the businesses it operates.


This is obviously early days, but for anyone that fancies a speculative punt on a penny share, HCEG is worth a second look.ENDS.

Well it looks very good to me although its a speculative punt, what isnt in the markets today. Good chance to get on board aswell on a bad day.

Please DYOR. You are responsible for your own buying and selling actions.

GF.

Skids, Nigel Wray "is the British Warren Buffet" according to Tom at t1ps.com.

He's a serial investor, yesterday he sold 10m shares (10.4% of company)if Stockcube and the price has dropped today. He was also involved in the debacle at Knutsford.

If he's buying a company today I would follow suit if I knew about it but keep my eyes on the price.

Anyone know of other companies he's in?

That's one clever child!!!

He usually holds for the long term and picks good companies. He bought into Domino's Pizza when they were penny shares and look at them now. I believe he is still holding.

Hes not a favourite of mine, far better to follow Mark Slater who does come up with some corkers and Angi he does a cast on t1ps abot 2 times per year. If you are a member look at the archives to find his latest casts, well worth it in my opinion.

cheers GF

Ps, did you PM me a while Back???????, lost a lot of e-mails due to NTL, my appologies if you did.

Yes Goldfinger, I did but I can't remember what about! Such a lot going on.

I've looked on the t1ps archive and Mark Slater hasn't been interviewed lately. Can I find him anywhere else?

regards angi

Ebiox are proud to present the Ebiox StreamRoom, featuring a selection of short on-line video presentations about the company and the extensive Ebiox product range.

Find out from current users just how the Ebiox range has revolutionised their surgical instrumentation cleansing process
http://www.ebiox.co.uk/home.htm

Quality web site with loads of information and proof on the validity of the product.

I'd buy it! How much is it compared to other similar (but less effective) products.

How much will hospitals, etc save on compensation claims in the long term if no-one can sue for infection because of Ebiox use!

Huge potential market and business from these products should rate HCEG as a strong buy without a doubt (from me at least).

Brought to the top for poster cath.

cheers GF.

thanks GF

when r the results due for this company?

Many more to follow hopefully.

UK smallcap opening - Healthcare Enterprise tick up on NHS deal
AFX


LONDON (AFX) - Shares in Healthcare Enterprise Group ticked firmer as the healthcare products and services company said Vernon-Carus has been awarded a more than three-year contract to supply Ebiox cleaning wipes to the NHS.

Healthcare Enterprise has a 49 pct stake in Ebiox with options to buy the outstanding shares.

Under the contract, the cleaning wipes called Azowipe Active will be made available to all NHS hospitals in a contract to run between April 2004 and October 2007.

Healthcare shares stood 0.10 better at 2.29 by 8.23 am.

fjb/rn

sw

US news to follow too after the FDA apporovals.
maybe next month ??


good old hceg

Good day great announcement,many more to come i hope.
And a big well done to S Bruck.

Stagnating a bit now, but no worries with this company IMHO. Plenty of good news should be released in the future so long as the Ebiox sales keep improving, as they should with a product of this calibre. Just gotta hope the sales team know their onions (and cleaning products).

Buy more if they dip below 2p IMHO again. Buy more if you can afford to wait med to long term to realise your investment!

a lot of talk on television news about MRSA they may rise once people click on to what they supply

Australia and canada are good markets for hceg

Can anybody give suggestions to why the big selling off in the last couple of days....is it to do with profit taking?

benners , are you certain that they are all sells? i bought hceg this week . it came up as a sell . i asked ian from money am why and he said that there is no indication what type trades are . they basically guess from the tradeprice wether a trade is a buy or a sell . my buy price was the same as the sell price. so it appeared as a sell . i have no idea how many others appeared like this .

Ok cheers bosley!...just getting a bit concerned

It's always a tricky one, the buy/sell ratio.

I don't understand the reason fully, but apparently sometimes large orders in the morning are set at the price at that time, but are not reported until later in the day. If the price has moved up in the meantime then the reported price will be closer to the selling price and so it will show as a sell instead of a buy.

It's starting to look like a nice consolidation around the 2.20 mark. Might be time to consider topping up.

Doug