ASOS have dropped quite significantly in the past week for no particular reason and I view this as the perfect opportunity to invest as I can see them bouncing right back up to the 5.50p mark in the next 2-3 weeks. STRONG BUY!!

I think you could fill quite a large room with people who have tried to short this stock (me included). ASOS continues to defy gravity but a PE of 23.2 isn't all that challening in a growth sector. My own short experience would have been most successfull had the LSE not allowed a temporary suspension following the fuel storage explosion which literally 'blew the bloody doors off' (best Michael Caine voice) their warehouse. I escaped flat and have no intention of trying again. Actually my biggest regret is that I spotted ASOS trading at 7.5p some years ago and decided a 30% increase within a week due to a Shares mag tip was too much too soon! Wish I'd bought then and held for a 40 bagger, isn't hindsight a wonderful thing?

Hardy Amies, JJB, John Lewis & Debenhams all now reporting a marked drop in clothing sales. I would suspect that 2009 is going to be very difficult for these guys also. If I were still holding I would be very tempted to take most of my profit this side of Xmas. Seems a real shame for such a successful company, but beware the shorters, imo.

From The Times
September 29, 2008
Steve Hawkes

The chief executive of Asos has vowed that the fast-growing internet clothing retailer will overtake Next to become the biggest fashion website in Britain within the next two to three years.

A trading statement on Wednesday is expected to reveal that the web retailer enjoyed sales growth of about 90 per cent over the summer, despite the credit crunch.

Nick Robertson, who launched Asos as As Seen on Screen a decade ago, said that in time the business - which is second to Next in the online fashion world and sells clothes modelled on those worn by celebrities such as David Beckham and Sienna Miller - would dominate the market.

Mr Robertson said: The opportunity still exists for someone to be the dominant player in the fashion space. It will be Asos and it should be Asos. Our goal is to overtake Next in terms of traffic and we are increasingly nudging towards that.

The Asos share of the online clothing market is now almost 5 per cent, placing it above Topshop and New Look. Next boasts 7 per cent.

Mr Robertson added that consumers of all ages were becoming more used to shopping online: The barriers that were there, things like wanting to try something on before buying, seem to be disappearing by the day.

Since its launch, the retailer has evolved into an online department store that stocks 600 brands, ranging from Calvin Klein and French Connection to Nudie Jeans, as well as its own. It sells 17,000 products, from sunglasses to golf jackets, and launched Asos Red, a dedicated online designer discount house, in an effort to take market share from TK Maxx, the high street equivalent.

Yet despite annual profits of little more than 8million, the company's market value is 270million, a valuation that reflects investor hopes about its potential. However, analysts have said that Asos could suffer as financially powerful rivals such as Marks & Spencer and Topshop invest more in their online offerings.

According to Nick Bubb, of Pali International: Asos still gets a large amount of PR for what is not a big company and that has driven up the shares and the rating on the company to a very high level.

But. as Topshop and New Look develop their websites, they could get shouldered out. It's obviously doing well, sales figures don't lie ... but I think the rating is pretty rich.

This month, Topshop.com accepted US dollars in payment for the first time in anticipation of the opening in New York of the first Topshop store in the United States.

The Asos chief executive said that Topshop was only playing catch-up by accepting US dollars and there was no reason to expect growth at Asos to slow. The internet retailer has been taking foreign currency for five years and international sales account for 10percent of its turnover, Mr Robertson said.

What Topshop has done in the US is pretty straightforward. We're looking at launching foreign language version of our site in the next 12 to 18 months.

Everybody who is on the net, be it at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, everybody is seeing significant growth, that's across the board, everybody is growing like stink, so success in this area will now depend a lot on which of us has the best online retailing skills.

Asos has had a very good Christmas for the last seven years. Will it be stronger this year than previous years? Yes, I think it will.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/retailing/article4842185.ece

bullish news, sitting on support.
just where its needed most.(or least)
hmmmm!
lets see.
regards
jkd

stalking!!
gotta be carefull.
wait for the wind to be in my right direction.
then pull that trigger.
jkd

RNS Number : 7546E
ASOS PLC
01 October 2008



FOR RELEASE AT 7.00 AM

01 October 2008



ASOS PLC

('ASOS' or 'the Company')

(Leading online fashion retailer)




AGM STATEMENT

ASOS.com sales up 104% for the 6 months to 30 September 2008

1.83m registered users at 28 September 2008 (1.43m at 30 September 2007)

Management positive about the long term prospects for ASOS

Nick Robertson, the Chief Executive, will make the following comments on current trading at the Annual General Meeting to be held at 11.00 am today at JPMorgan Cazenove, 20 Moorgate, London, EC2R 6DA.

'I am pleased to report another strong performance for ASOS.com. Sales for the 6 months to 30 September are 104% ahead year on year, up from 80% growth in the same period last year.

As at 28 September 2008, ASOS.com had 1.83m registered users and 890,000 active customers, up from 490,000 last year (active customers are defined as having shopped in the last 6 months).

This strong performance reflects our strategy and the investments we have made, and continue to make, across the business to support our ambitions of becoming the UK's market leader in online fashion.

We remain positive about the long term prospects for ASOS and the future of online shopping in general. We believe our business dynamics and customer base should be resilient to the wider economic issues and that online shopping will continue to gain market share. That said, we face tougher second half comparables, and still need to trade through the all important Christmas period before we can accurately assess our performance for the full year.

We will provide a further trading update with the interim results, for the six months ended 30 September 2008, to be released on 17 November 2008

very long time since you will have seen me suggest buying a high street stock, let alone one fashion orientated, but now you do! ...... from a tart who can't read a balance sheet, these results and forecast look stunning ...... though the reaction to last night's senate vote has been muted at best, i think you will find the markets reacting sharply northwards during the coming days, even if that is short-lived .....

ASC sp has tumbled sharply in the last few days, so i have just bought at 320

looks as though i may have been a little premature in that, but if 300 hit (200 dma) shall top up

Catching a falling knife eh?

dangerous in these markets .

Good luck.

not exactly as i did not hold them before .... indeed made some money on short tack a couple of weeks back when they were just below 400

in fact, i see i am now in the money, so perhaps not so dumb after all, but we shall see

good luck cynic

Asos is the hottest retailer in a decidedly icy sector. Analysts expect much from the company, hence it trades on a multiple of 29 times earnings for the current year - far higher than high street retailers. Yesterday's trading statement, which showed an acceleration in already phenomenal sales growth, gives more ammunition to the bulls. There is little margin for error, especially in the face of the credit crunch. But given that Asos has no direct competitors its size, and internet shopping is forecast to boom, the stock looks set to get even hotter, writes the FT.

and of course it is not impossible that some predator will get greedy, but that is no reason to buy

Bought a few myself earlier cyners.

looking for a short term gain.

you aren't one of these bloody short term opportunists and speculators i hope - lol!

Looks good update to me and with a buoyant Christmas expected ahead I'm staying put. May be tempted to add at round these levels. As someone indicated earlier for a growth stock I don't consider it over priced.

sos celebrates most profitable day to date

Published: 02 October 2008 16:22
Last Updated: 02 October 2008 16:22
Reader Responses


Fashion e-tailer Asos enjoyed its most profitable day to date on Tuesday, in stark contrast to dire performances being reported by high street retailers.
Asos's record-beating one-day performance came in the wake of a stellar six months – sales leapt 104 per cent in the period to September 30.

Chief executive Nick Robertson said that Asos's success was due to a combination of factors. The e-tailer's young fashion customers are proving ready to spend in the downturn, and bad weather taking sales off the high street.

Robertson said: "Young fashion is more resilient and expectations that online will be 10 per cent of fashion sales in the next two to three years is benefiting us."

He emphasised that no retailer can be totally immune to the downturn, but said that "all things being equal", Asos expects a very strong Christmas.

Robertson also said that more retailers were poised to start selling on Asos's site as they realised they could do so without cannibalisation.

The e-tailer had 3.9 million unique users in September and registered users now number 1.83 million.

SELL Asos...it is going downhill quickly...290p now

sp totally clattered ..... confess i did not have the balls to short them the other day ..... silly really; psychologicallyt much harder to short than to go long

wow...260p now...real fast drop.