Decent results out today and a good divi 11p (not checked the cover yet though), has and should benefit from an up and down market.

Worth keeping an eye on perhaps, what do you think?

"UK-IG down on disappointing Japan performance."

Down 6.5% on a ex divi, and interim trading statement day, obviously the market not liking the Japan comments and time to profit take perhaps after it's terrific run.

I've just looked in here--lovely chart Stan. Why not all change over to here!!

OK MP as you wish, This one's rebounding nicely don't you think? -):

S/P continues to move up nicely ahead of next Wednesday's Trading S/M.

Market seems to like the trading statement, up 4% so I'm out.

Was looking at a divi play with these this week (paying 5p) but just noticed quite a few Director sells on the 21st. might be worth staying clear for now.

Blow me, it's broken the 4 hump!

More Director selling: Jonathan Davie this time.. 200000!

Stan, If I had 200000 shares i would sell a few.

Have a nice day. Will be in touch.

From this week's Shares Mag (Simon Keane):
"Aside from the large disposals by IG (IGG) directors there were few other trades of notable size last week. It is perhaps interesting there were few sales in a week in which the market took a hammering with the FTSE All-Share falling 2.7% over the five-day trading period after US president Barack Obama turned on the banks (see Opinion page 4 and Agenda page 7). As Shares explains, the IG sales should be ignored given the growth story. This view is supported by the fact fund managers at Artemis Investment Management bought a lot of stock the day after the management transactions. Artemis growth contingent are strong advocates of GARP (growth at a reasonable price) and presumably see IGs rating as cheap relative to its earnings potential."

"Chief executive officer Tim Howkins was at the forefront of selling by IG Group (IGG) directors following last weeks interims (19 Jan) with a 2.9 million disposal. Investors should not be alarmed by the raft of sales, which also included a 3.7 million deal by legal director Andrew MacKay, as the retail derivative brokers growth story remains intact. It was encouraging IGs shares hardly budged following Thursdays (21 Jan) dealing disclosures, actually rising a penny. The trades were a mix of pure selling and disposals following the exercise of options. Howkins, for instance, sold an additional 668,222 worth of securities, connected with the exercise of options under IGs long-term incentive plan (LTIP).
IG delivered an encouraging set of halfyear numbers. The core UK financial businesses reported flat revenues at 79.9 million versus 80.4 million last time, with none of the bad debts of the first half of last year so margins were back to form. The unpaid bills were the consequence of the huge volatility in the first half of last year (six months to 30 November 2008). But that volatility had its benefits too as it resulted in an upturn in trading activity with UK financial revenues 7% ahead of the 74.6 million achieved in the first six months of 2008. That IG matched last years UK revenue performance on considerably less volatility is encouraging. With the UK financial business back on a steady keel investors should be confident in future predicted cash flows with the 1.4 billion cap forecast to throw off 140 million of free cash this year according to Singer Capital, equivalent to a 10% free cash flow yield. This money will be put to work expanding the derivatives business into Europe where retail traders only tend to have warrants as a means to getting leverage.
Shares says: Margins are back on track and the firm is throwing off cash again. BUY"

Thanks for that HC, helps to explain in detail.

5 year chart below shows some pretty hefty fluctuation, but for all that, i think it's a damn good company in it's field ..... however, would be inclined to now wait to see what happens when it gets to the all-time high, which is a bare 15/20p away

I see what you mean Fred -):

It certainly doesn't like that 4 does it?

Janus Capital unload 526,304 shares (00.11), with little effect so far on SP -3p.

Crept above that 4 again.. how long for is another matter.

Comment from Liberum this morning:
"IG are putting more pressure on the competition by cutting spreads on indices
to 1 point on the FTSE-100 and to 2 points on daily Wall Street. This should drive further market share gains, but we are surprised that the company is cutting spreads given its current position of strength. It suggests competition levels are greater than we expected."

Liberum summary note:
No surprises, results in line � Revenue was �320.4m (2010: �298.6m) in line with company guidance at the pre-close statement on 9th June. Adjusted PBT was �163m vs. Liberum estimate �163.5m, (2010: �157.6m), growth of 3.4%. Adj. EPS was slightly ahead: 32.6p vs. Liberum 31.6p. Excluding Japan, revenue from the financial business increased by 9% with Europe and the Rest of the World providing the highest growth rates.
This was a solid set of results in a tough trading environment of volatility
Current trading � IG has a solid start to its new financial year with good levels of UK activity. Despite low volatility, revenue is ahead vs. June 2010. Customer retention and revenue per client have also stabilised which is a further positive. No upgrades for now � With less than two months into the new financial year we do not expect any upgrades today. Our PBT forecast of £181.9m is 2% ahead of consensus.
Don't be Vixated by the Vix The Vix remains at suppressed levels however we believe investors should look beyond the lack of short term-volatility. IG�s European business could ultimately generate £200m of revenue (63% of FY11 total). Nothing is factored into IG�s valuation for Nadex. We believe that investors should Buy the shares in advance of an increase in volatility.
Valuation Although there is little new news today, we retain our Buy rating on IG with a target price to 525p. IG is a dominant player in a structural growth industry with high barriers to entry. The 42% CAGR since the 2005 IPO warrants a higher rating than the current CY12 P/E of 11x. The Dividend Yield of 5.5% in CY12E is attractive. BUY.

Merrill Lynch note:
"IG Group has released a brief unscheduled trading update indicating that H1 revenue will be "in excess" of £193mn, up over 23% year-on-year and 11% ahead of our estimate of £174mn. This implies Q2 revenue of over £93mn, down only modestly from £100mn in Q1 as the company has continued to benefit from high levels of client activity given the context of elevated market volatility. Costs are tracking in line with management expectations. We note that the company has previously guided that PBT margins will be broadly flat this year reflecting ongoing investment in its technology and mobile offerings. We expect revenues to moderate as volatility subsides but anticipate making low to mid single digit percentage upgrades to our full year EPS forecasts reflecting the strong H1 performance. We retain our Buy rating and price objective of 510p."

Ex divi 19th Sept '12 (16.75p) which is a pretty good return on a stock at current value 440p!

Sure is HC, but the chart needs looking at nearer the event though.

Tricky to know where the market is heading over the next few weeks, but assuming nothing catastrophic hits the headlines (nude pics of Prince Harry don't qualify), I would like to pick up some IGG at around 420p. Only 28 days to ex-divi.

Good point about being careful in the near future, I've had my best summer ever up to now and don't want to spoil it, so my gut feeling is to unload for now in general, sit on the fence and see how it unfolds.. but divvies like these do make one think about possible opportunities.

IMS due early september.

hope george is watching this one, will it go to 420 or even 410 for bottom?? 16.75p div

426p currently. Bank holiday coming up. Looking for 415p.....hopefully!

Hold up boys! just seen the Divvy Cover:http://www.moneyam.com/fundamentals/index.php?display=dividends&stockCode=IGG 1.5 Cover is usually considered a minimum, so I'm currently hesitating until I know more.. what da yar say?

PE of 11.4, Div cover of 1.7,, Div yield 5.2%, EPS growth f/c 1% for 2012/13.
It's just my intention to try and get in as low as possible, get the divi and get out pdq, but if I get in and show enough of a profit before the divi, then I will sell. I agree that post divi, the sp will probably take a biggish hit.

Where did you get those numbers from H, are they up to date? as mine are from Thomsons and I had assumed current.

They came from digitallook.
I checked with LSE web page and figures are very similar. Div cover is 1.68.

http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-markets/stocks/summary/company-summary.html?fourWayKey=GB00B06QFB75GBGBXSTMM

HARRY IGG dividend policy is to pay out 60% of diluted earnings per share, so dividend cover should always remain around where it is now.

Cheers h. Sounds good to me.

Cheers H, Me to, consistent over the years as well.

took plunge and bought at 426p doesn't seem to want to drop anymore and Sept coing up fast.,.

Yes, I think you may be right Bb. Am still watching and hoping to buy at 420p, but it's just me being bloody minded really 'cos I don't think 6p is going to make a great deal of difference in the long run. Just satisfying to buy at the bottom!

Also waiting for 420. Nice divi 16.7p a share. All the best Balerboy.

I'm cleanng IG out, go short if I were you.
Apart from that it's a short from 450-460p anyway.
Ta da!

I tend to agree, which is what I said in post #28, but to be short pre divi seems a bit risky, imo.

I'd be quite happy with 450-460p thankyou.,.

Going well this morning, already 431p.,.

Selftrade broker consensus has a 515p target.

Yeah.. but when? -):

on the 26th sept.,.

I should think you are feeling pretty happy with your purchase Bb? Sp all over the place this morning but looks like your entry point won't happen again now. I might have to be content with 429p!

Trading statement on 11th Sept.

Ugh! 425p.......wasn't expecting this drop.

421p next, according to the chart H.

Quite a shift up last Nov. 21st-30th (73p) I've just noticed, Had a bit of a dig around but does anyone remember the market conditions that surrounded that rise exactly?

Not really. Have had a look at the FTSE (UKX) chart, but it was firmly in uptrend, with the odd lurch down.
IGG now 435p. Don't jinx it Stan! ;o)

Do me best Harry -): but i'm still waying up an entry point.. or not.

not much upwards movement in front of next tuesdays IMS, perhaps lack of volatility in the market is the problem?

StockMarketWire.com
Spread betting firm said revenue in the first quarter was in line with expectations at £81.5m, 18% lower than the prior year.

As previously stated, the comparator period in 2011, which was 30% ahead of the year before, was marked by some extreme levels of volatility in financial markets and short term spikes in client activity.

August 2011 remains, by some way, the record month for the group in terms of trading revenue.

Performance across the group was reasonably consistent, with revenue down in all regions. The particularly quiet financial markets impacted all areas of client activity relative to the prior period, including active client numbers, average revenue per client and the number of clients signing up and trading for the first time. The impact of the fall in revenue on profit before tax was partly mitigated by a number of factors including the flow through into lower staff bonuses, low betting duty and subdued marketing activity; the last of these was both as a direct result of quieter markets and hence reduced demand, and in anticipation of new marketing due to commence early in the second quarter which will build on the strength of the IG brand.

In the longer established UK and Australian markets, both the number of clients active in the period and the average revenue per client were down, leading to revenue falls of 21% and 17% respectively. Recent market share data* in Australia indicates that IG's market share increased over the prior year from 34% to 37%, in a market which grew by 7%; this is particularly pleasing against the backdrop of increased competition and higher competitor marketing.

Revenue in Europe was down by 20%, reflecting the return to more normal seasonal trading patterns, with clients reducing their activity during the summer holiday period. Active client numbers increased in all of the European countries, with the strongest growth in the group's newest offices in Sweden and the Netherlands. However, weak sentiment, coupled with a more challenging competitive environment, impacted results in Germany against a particularly strong prior period.

The Rest of the World was only slightly down against the prior year, with the drop in average revenue per client almost entirely offset by continued growth in active clients. Nadex continues to develop its direct retail offering and saw a steady improvement in the number of clients trading on the exchange, albeit from a low base.

IG has a track record of applying higher standards than required by regulation in the protection of client money, including being the first major CFD provider in Australia to offer full protection and in the UK offering full protection to individuals who are classified as professionals. In keeping with this leadership position, the group has recently had an independent assurance assessment of its client money processes and controls completed to the ISAE 3000 standard, and believes it is the first firm in its industry to do so.

Outlook
The first quarter of any financial year is normally the lowest revenue quarter for IG, with the prior year an unusual exception to this. The group continues to face tough comparatives at the start of the second quarter, with September 2011 the second highest revenue month in the history of the company. The group anticipates that revenue this year will, as in most years, be weighted towards the second half.

The words 'lower' and 'down' appear far too many times for my liking in the results RNS, yet the sp is up 4%. Not complaining, but............

I'm not complaining well in profit now, got to watch for the top and set stop.,. 460p maybe top.,.

Push through 200 DMA to top at c480p. Another week to go until ex-divi, so always hopeful!!!

missed the nano second it jumped to 460p lol settled for 451p.,.

Up nearly 6% at the mo, well done boys.

Then it jumps back up to 457 aaaaaarrrrrrrr!!!!

464p and still going! ;o) (Sorry Bb) ;o(

Up and down like cynics pants.,.

Low of 440 & high of 468, so far. Think I will hang on though for a day or two and decide whether to get out before the ex-divi drop.

Mind you don't lose it though Harry.. a good profit that is -):

Profit + divi would be nice though! I have known stocks hardly alter when the ex-divi date kicks in, so can't decide what to do......yet.

good luck harry but i think your being just a tad greedy:)

Can't recall why I thought this was a short from 460p, will have to take another look.

Yes Bb, you aren't far wrong, but it is a strategy which is working for me atm, though sometimes I have to wait a few weeks for the sp to recover after the divi. There doesn't seem much point in getting the divi but selling at a loss, so I spend quite alot of time hunting around for stocks which seem to recover quickly.

SP. holding up well so far.

words in wrong order stan, should read:
So, sp holding up far to well....lol

Hmmmm........approaching my target of 480p. May have to take profit pre-divi. Would be a shame to lose it all. Did you get back in Bb?

no left it to you harry, done that before and got burnt. I came out with a profit but not as big as yours.......;)

Decision time coming harry, you staying for div or taking your very good profit??

Am getting out today or tomorrow. Profit I have far outweighs the divi and am assuming sp will dip heavily ex-divi. Waiting for the slight dip today to reverse.

40 billion a month put into the economy by Badhanky in the US (good news for shares in general) now to be tempered by tension between China and Japan (bad news) makes this week a bit more difficult to gage then usual. I'm having the same dilemma with PFC going Ex. divi. and how to play it.

Took my money out yesterday at a reasonable profit, though didn't managed to time it quite right, but thought it time to move on.

good move harry, MAYG hasn't moved today so glad I'm out of that one. Am waiting with tight stop on marl to see if theres anymore on that one.,.

Never wrong to take a profit boys as we know.

Director sells 156,000 shares: http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4450558

Is this worth getting into again? Anyone any thoughts on this one.

Looking at the chart above I would say no PF.

The great spread betting challenge

First posted 25th October.

As part of our great spread betting challenge, five investors will dabble in a spread betting demonstration to see how much they can gain or lose over five weeks.

I.G. group trading statement 15th Jan. 2013

I see they call it the Interim Statement now.

sp up 6.5% today?

Is it true THOSE improvements?
"2an add-in to the Chrome browser which enables rapid click-through from web pages to dealing
These all provide clients with a more streamlined path from a trading idea to placing a deal "............

IG Group encouraged by increase in client activity levels

Spread better IG Group Holdings said today that revenue in the third quarter to end-February was £88.6m, 18% ahead of the prior year. UK revenue was ahead by 15%, with a 16% increase in average revenue per client.

This result reflects increased activity across the business, as client sentiment improved in more conducive market conditions, and a relatively weak prior year comparative quarter in what was otherwise a very strong year.

Financial markets provided a range of opportunities for clients across all asset classes, with stronger equity markets coinciding with increased news flow, particularly around the fiscal cliff negotiations in the US and the credit rating downgrade in the UK, which drove some greater intra-day volatility in the major indices. Revenue was ahead in all regions, with particularly strong performance in the faster growing regions of Europe and Rest of World. In this stronger revenue environment operating costs were held in check across the group, in line with recent guidance, although the betting duty charge was more in line with a busier quarter.

UK revenue was ahead by 15%, with a 16% increase in average revenue per client only partially offset by a small fall in the number of active clients trading in the period.

In Australia revenue was ahead by 10%, driven by the 11% increase in average revenue per client.

While the level of trading from existing clients improved significantly, weak consumer confidence continued to restrict the flow of new clients into the market.

Europe recorded significant growth in the third quarter in revenue and the two key performance metrics. Revenue was ahead by 22%, with active client numbers up by 14% and average revenue per client up by 7%. Active client numbers were up across all of the European countries, with the strongest revenue growth in Germany and Sweden.

Revenue in Rest of World was 51% ahead of the prior period, with the uplift in revenue driven mainly by a very strong performance in Singapore as larger, more active clients returned to the market. Though much less material in absolute terms, South Africa and the USA also posted strong growth.

Business developments

IG continued to develop its technology platform, with a strong emphasis on delivering an increasingly differentiated user experience and removing friction from the trading process. Enhancements here include a single mobile app for spread betting and CFD trading; an add-in to the Chrome browser which enables rapid click-through from web pages to dealing; the ability to trade directly from a Bloomberg terminal; and push-alerts to mobile devices. These all provide clients with a more streamlined path from a trading idea to placing a deal............

RNS High Court dismisses £25m claim against IG by former clients Echelon.

Trading Update: http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4611496

sp through £6.

Preliminaries out today http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4636600

Reduction In holding http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4667507

Ex-divi wed 18th Sept (17.5p)

Trading Statement http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4669443

Ex-divi wed 23rd Oct (22.4p)

Edited

Think you'll find it's 23 Oct paid nov. Harry. I bought some yesterday.,.

It is October - paid on 18th November.

Well spotted! Have corrected.

This is a good link for Ex dates

That's the one I use but am really only interested in anything paying over 3%.

Interim Management Statement
IG Group today issues the following Interim Management Statement for the period from 1 June 2014 to 16 September 2014. Unless otherwise stated, trends and figures highlighted below refer to the three months ended 31 August 2014 - the first quarter of the company's 2015 financial year - and the corresponding period last year.

Revenue in the first quarter was £85.6 million, 9% behind the same period in the prior year. The first three months of the company's year were particularly quiet in the financial markets, with volumes and volatility close to historic lows and the continuation of recent weakness in forex activity. The majority of the year-on-year difference occurred in June, which was unusually strong in the prior year.

Revenue was behind in all of the geographic regions, as the extremely quiet backdrop impacted performance. In the UK the 8% drop in active client numbers was partially offset by an increase in average revenue per client. In Australia revenue was 10% down on the prior year period, although flat against the fourth quarter of last year. In Europe, even with the relatively quiet market backdrop, active client numbers grew by 9%; however, this was more than offset by the fall in average revenue per client. In Rest of World, the continuation of weakness in the forex markets impacted Japan and Singapore, where revenue was down by around 30%; this was partially offset by strong year-on-year growth in South Africa.

In mid-September, IG launched its stockbroking offering in the UK and Ireland with a broad range of UK, US, German, Dutch and Irish equities, Exchange Traded Funds and a tax-free ISA account. Although this may take some time to build, it has a number of significant advantages against other offerings and is a major strategic development for IG. Also in September, the Swiss regulator issued the licence for IG's new sales office in Geneva and the company expects to begin trading there in the very near future.

Looking forward
The company will progress several initiatives through this year, as part of its long-term diversification strategy, with the aim being to make IG the default choice for active traders globally. It will continue to develop the stockbroking offering, including adding the ability for clients to use their equity assets as collateral against shorter-term leveraged trading, and commencing a targeted international roll-out. IG will also progress its licence application in Dubai. The company is also applying significant effort to enhancing and maximising its mobile offering across the globe and to developing and refining its web presence. By successfully executing on these initiatives the company believes it can deliver the next phase of its growth.

Today there will be a conference call for analysts and investors at 8.30am (UK time). The call can be accessed by dialling +44 20 3059 8125. A replay of the conference call will be available for a week after the event by dialling +44 121 260 4861 and using passcode 4913485#, and it will be archived for access at www.iggroup.com/investors.

The next planned performance announcement from IG is the H1 pre-close trading update, currently scheduled for 25 November 2014.

Doing me well at the mo:

25 November 2014

IG GROUP HOLDINGS PLC
Pre Close Trading Update



IG Group, a global leader in online trading, today issues the following Trading Update for the second quarter of the financial year ending 31 May 2015, ahead of entering its close period on 1 December 2014.



In contrast to the subdued first quarter of this year, client activity levels increased significantly in the second quarter, particularly in October, as the financial markets presented considerably more trading opportunities. The company performed very well over this period and will achieve quarterly revenue ahead of its previous highest quarter at the end of the 2013 year. This will place IG in a robust position as it enters the second half of the financial year.

Today management will be available on a conference call for institutional investors and analysts at 8.30am (UK time). The call can be accessed by dialling +44 (0)20 3059 8125. A replay of the conference call will be available for a period of seven days after the event by dialling +44 (0)121 260 4861 and using the confirmation code 5781076#, and it will be archived for access at www.iggroup.com.

Plus 25p today...... going well

Nice chart Balerboy - I wonder if you can short them on their own platform :-)

What goes up gotta come down but ......how far.,.

Chickened out and sold up at 674, nice profit for now.,.

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group Holdings has issued a statement on the exceptional announcement by the Swiss National Bank, which resulted in a sudden and extreme movement in the value of the Swiss franc.

IG says the precise level of the impact will be partially dependent on the company's ability to recover client debts, but in total it will not exceed £30m, from market and credit exposure.

The market exposure occurred where client positions were closed at a more beneficial level than the company was able to close its entire corresponding hedge due to the market dislocation.

This occurs against the backdrop of very strong recent and current performance and IG's extremely robust financial position.

As scheduled, on 20 January, IG will present its results for the first six months of the 2015 year, and will provide an update on progress on its strategic initiatives.

I almost feel sorry for them..................

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group Holdings reports strong first half results despite a very subdued first quarter.

Net trading revenue for the six months to the end of November was up 8% at £197.4m and profit before tax rose by 2.8% to £101.4m.

Chief executive Tim Howkins said: "IG delivered another very strong set of results, with record revenue in the half year after a subdued first quarter. We also made good progress with our ongoing investment in strategic initiatives designed to drive future growth, including the launch of stockbroking in the UK and the opening of a new office in Switzerland.

"In November we celebrated IG's 40th anniversary. It was a great pleasure to be joined in those celebrations by a number of clients who have been active with us for a large portion of those 40 years. In what has recently become a very challenging time for the industry, IG's strong financial position and commitment to service should provide both existing and new clients with reassurance that we remain the number one trading partner.

"I believe that the initiatives we are embarked upon provide clear evidence that, after 40 years, our ambition to drive forward and develop the business is as strong as it has ever been."

StockMarketWire.com
Online trading company IG Group's third quarter revenues fell by 5.1% to £91.8m after the Swiss National Bank decided to remove the ceiling for the Swiss franc against the euro in January.

But it says that excluding this, underlying revenue rose 7.1% to £103.6m.

IG said the sudden Swiss franc movement also resulted in client debts of £18.4m. It says that while half of the debtor accounts have now been settled, this relates to only a small proportion of the original £18.4m and the majority of remaining debtors may not be in a financial position to clear their debt in full.

Revenue in the UK and Australia was ahead by almost 9% and 16% respectively, primarily due to strong growth in average revenue per client, but with both regions also posting their second consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth in client numbers.

In Europe revenue was behind by just over 3%, as the strong year-on-year increase in client numbers was more than offset by a fall in average revenue per client. In Rest of World, revenue was ahead by 9%, with growth in all countries. Active clients numbers were ahead by 13%, with particular strength in the US and South Africa.

The group's execution-only stockbroking business, which was launched in the UK in the second quarter, continued to grow well. At the end of February, IG had over 2,600 funded stockbroking accounts, of which around 70% are clients new to IG.

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group remains on track to deliver against full year financial expectations, a pre-close trading update for the year ending 31 May says.

IG says that importantly it also made good strategic progress over the period, extending its stockbroking offering into the Netherlands and receiving approval in-principle of its regulatory licence in Dubai towards the end of May, which should enable full authorisation and the opening of its office there in the coming weeks.

Liberum note today:
"IG has built an enviable market position in spread betting and CFD trading. However, we consider it to be a mature business that is struggling to grow in a meaningful fashion. Depending on your view, expansion into stockbroking could be considered proof of this, or a natural development of the franchise. Whatever the case, new initiatives are required to help drive the business forward. The agreement with Blackrock to sell ETF’s, announced this morning, is an indication that the business is exploring new ways to grow. We suspect this might contribute to a reduction in income per client.
Results broadly in-line
Results appear to be in-line with consensus. The impact of the Swiss franc debacle in Jan’15, resulted in a £12m hit to revenue and a £15m (net of recoveries) increase in bad debts. Consequently, PBT was -13% at £169.5m and EPS -11% at 36.0p. However, even on an underlying basis (excluding impact of Swiss Franc), Adj. PBT was -1% at £193.2m. The DPS was held at 28.15p. The DPS policy (payout ratio 70%) remains in place.
KPI’s illustrate the challenges
Active clients were +8% YoY, split 3% in H1 and 10% in H2. We suspect the stronger growth in H2 was partly driven by the increased volatility caused by the Swiss Franc move. Revenue per client for the year was flat. In the last few years, management has concentrated on increasing the value of clients, in the main by shedding lower value, uneconomic clients. The stabilization in the current year might indicate that process has run its course.
CEO retiring
After 16 years, Tim Howkins (CEO) has announced his retirement. We do not view this as cause for concern. His contribution, as CFO and CEO, has been invaluable during a period of strong expansion. We believe the growth outlook for the business is challenging and as such, the current valuation looks too rich. The stock trades on a FY16f PE of 18.9x, falling to 17.8x and yields 3.7%. Until we get more comfort on growth initiatives we retain the Hold recommendation."

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group's revenue in the first quarter was £106.0m, 24% ahead of the corresponding period last year, which was particularly subdued.

In what is traditionally a relatively quiet period for the business, the financial markets presented a range of trading opportunities for clients, responding to news flow, including around the Greek eurozone membership debate and the current state of the Chinese economy.

IGG says that although the performance was good in all months in the quarter, client activity levels were at their highest during the second half of August.

Looking ahead, the group says this strong start to the year positions the business well to deliver against full year expectations. However, it is impossible to predict the market conditions for the rest of the year and therefore too early to draw many conclusions.

IG has a clear strategy and will continue to execute against its priorities, which this financial year include rolling out the stockbroking offering to additional countries, launching ETF portfolios, delivering further improvements in the client conversion process and moving the mobile interface forward.

Barclays note today:
Revenue performance was strong, but active client growth is more eye catching. As often happens in more volatile markets, IG performed well in Q1 with revenue of £106m, growth of 24% vs the prior year. This is the company’s second best quarter ever. Growth was achieved against relatively easy comparatives, where Q1 FY15 revenue of £85.6m was just 21.3% of FY15 revenue (pre-SNB), vs the long term average of 22.5%. More impressive and much more relevant to the long term investment thesis is the growth in active clients in the quarter. Across the group this was +19% year on year, and +4.9% quarter on quarter. This strong growth will have partly been driven by the market volatility but we believe is also a reflection of the initiatives relating to digital marketing and the client conversion process. We believe most of the improvement in active clients from company led initiatives is via improved marketing rather than improved conversion rates. One factor that has dragged up active client growth is first trades, which have grown by 50% in Q1 vs the prior year. The company has made the clear caveat that first trades were growing through every quarter in FY15, helping the YoY growth rate, but this is encouraging nonetheless.
No change to FY forecasts: History shows that predicting the full year revenue or profit outcome for IG based on any one quarter is folly, but this is clearly a good start. To hit our FY16 revenue forecasts of £432m (Bloomberg consensus £425.5m), the company needs to deliver average quarterly revenue of £108.8m, growth of 3% vs Q1. When compared with the average quarterly revenue from Q2-Q4 FY15 of £100.1m, this would be an average year on year growth rate of 8.8%.
Yield attractions: Given the company has recently announced the retirement of the long standing CEO and the departure of the CFO to Hargreaves Lansdown, it is reassuring that the business has captured revenue as we would expect after a period of market volatility. If investors were concerned that management are leaving due to poor trading, there is nothing in this statement to suggest this is true. IG trades on a May-16 PE of 17.2x, slightly above its LT average rating of c15x and ignores the cash balance of c£100m. Given the re-rating of the wider market, this is a discount to the LT average PE Rel of 1.13x vs the current rating of 1.04x. The May-16 dividend yield of 4.1% continues to look attractive, and we retain our OW rating."

Pre Close Trading Update http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5163085

Interims http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5195494

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group says it performed well during what was a relatively quiet fourth quarter of the year in financial markets, with all key operating and financial metrics remaining strong.

It says that as outlined in the third quarter trading update, this continued robust performance has resulted in higher variable operating costs in the last part of the year, including an increase in online marketing spend, where the payback remains compelling. This cost increase was more than offset by the ongoing strength in trading revenue, meaning the Company now expects full year earnings to be slightly ahead of expectations.

Results for the year ended 31 May will be announced on 19 July.

Liberum Capital today upgrades its investment rating on IG Group Holdings PLC (LON:IGG) to buy (from hold) and raised its price target to 986p (from 770p).

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group, a global leader in online trading, has completed the purchase of DailyFX, a leading global news and research portal, and its associated assets, from FXCM Inc for a total consideration of $40 million

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group says it continues to perform in line with expectations, after a strong second quarter.

Higher operating costs over the first half of the financial year, due primarily to the ongoing success in effective new client recruitment, have been offset by good revenue delivery

Wow... this looks cheap now at 560p.

Reuters - Britain's financial watchdog proposed tougher rules for retail financial spread betting products known as 'contracts for difference' (CFD) after finding that 82 percent of customers using them lost money.

"We have serious concerns that an increasing number of retail clients are trading in CFD products without an adequate understanding of the risks involved, and as a result can incur rapid, large and unexpected losses," the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said on Tuesday. bit.ly/2gxTBcg

CFDs, including spread bets and rolling spot foreign exchange products, are agreements between two parties to exchange the difference between the opening price and closing price of a contract.

Shares in UK's IG Group (IGG.L), which holds 40 percent of the UK financial spread betting market by number of active primary accounts, fell 22 percent to 611 pence in early trade.

Shares in retail brokerage CMC Markets (CMCX.L) were down 29.9 percent at 128.17 pence.

Both IG Group and CMC Markets did not immediately comment when contacted by Reuters.

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group, a global leader in online trading, has noted an intended measure issued by BaFin, a supervisor of the company's activities in Germany, regarding the marketing, distribution and sale of CFDs to retail clients.

The BaFin announcement proposes that the marketing, distribution and sale of CFDs to retail clients in Germany can only be undertaken if the client is not at risk of losing more than the value of their account.

The company considers the BaFin proposal to be consistent with IG's recent introduction of Limited Risk Accounts, which guarantee that clients cannot incur losses in excess of the amount deposited in their account.

IG firmly believes in robust and proportionate regulatory oversight of the CFD sector in all the markets in which it operates. The company says it has operated and will continue to operate to the highest standards in the industry.

IG will carefully consider the full implications of the BaFin announcement and will be seeking to meet with BaFin before responding to the consultation, in accordance with the timeline provided of 20 January.

Re post #120, I thought that one of the attractions of Spread Betting and CFD's was that investors could trade on margin???

Barclays Capital today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on IG Group Holdings PLC (LON:IGG) and cut its price target to 612p (from 950p).

Without having to scroll back to find out, what was the reason for the dramatic drop in December please?

All briefly explained in post #119.

Thanks Harry.

A rather encouraging set of Interims this morning from IGG I think, also a major share purchase so I have dipped my toe in.

What do you think?

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group Holdings - a global leader in online trading - posts pre-tax profits of £105.2m for the six months to the end of November, 6.7% up on last time.

Net trading revenue rose by 14% to a record £244.9m while operating expenses were up 23%, with significant investment in effective marketing.

Profit after tax was £83.3 million, 9% ahead of the prior year (2016: £76.7 million), as the group's effective tax rate fell to 20.8% (2016: 22.2%).

Chief executive Peter Hetherington said: "This has been another good six months for the business, with record revenue, a new high in active client numbers and ongoing success in attracting and developing the next generation of traders.

"I am extremely proud of what we have achieved.

"The business once again proved the resilience of its operating model and its people, as it dealt exceptionally well with the short term volatility in the financial markets caused by two significant political events.

"IG is evolving and refining its offering to clients.

"Strategically, for some time, we have been shifting our emphasis to active financial trading and investing, deepening and broadening the relationship with our clients.

"In January, we received our licence from the FCA to offer an investments service to clients in the UK, in partnership with BlackRock, and intend to launch our smart portfolio ETF product in the UK in the near future.

"Also, as part of this evolution, we now offer clients our Limited Risk account, with an absolute guarantee that they can lose no more than their deposit - around half of the accounts in the UK are being opened on this basis.

"We have also taken the decision to no longer offer our Sprints binary product to new clients globally.

"We welcome the intentions of the FCA and other European regulators to improve consumer outcomes across the industry, and we believe that IG's Limited Risk account will play an important role in this.

"In delivering a sustainable business for over 40 years, IG has always sought, and will always seek, to operate to the highest regulatory standards.

"As the largest provider in the industry, IG is engaging with the consultation processes."

Seems pretty good Stan. I don't have any spare cash at the mo, so shan't be joining you. Still the regulatory cloud hanging over the industry, so could go either way, but could take forever for them to decide what to do.

Yes, I think that director buy swung it for me.

In and out for a respectable profit in 2 days, this one has possibilies I tell ya.

http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5487660 A Director taking a capital gain before ex-divi I assume.

RBC note today:
While our FY17E forecasts are broadly unchanged, we reduce our FY18E/19E EPS forecasts by 20%/12% mainly because we bring revenue/client down again, particularly in the UK (we still, however, forecast client growth, even in the UK). Thus, this remains a risk: should IG experience a contraction in the number of clients, the risk for our forecasts remains to the downside. It is our opinion that IG will be able to offset some of the anticipated revenue decline with cost reductions, and after growing underlying operating expenses by £32MM, or 13%, in FY17, we forecast underlying operating expenses to decrease by 5% in FY18, and then fall another 5% in FY19.

We do not believe that further analysing the pending regulatory change will provide any additional clarity. Unfortunately, this overhang will likely persist as (1) the final regulations are announced (spring 2017), (2) the regulations become effective (likely summer 2017), (3) IG reworks its product offering, and revenue and profits decline (H1/FY18), (4) financial performance stabilisation occurs (H2/FY18 at the earliest), (5) a financial recovery occurs (FY19 at the earliest). In addition, it is likely in our opinion that further adverse regulatory measures will be implemented in some of IG’s other operating geographies.

Price target increased 2% to 510p on higher valuation multiple. We still believe that a discount to IG’s historical forward trading multiple is warranted to reflect impaired earnings visibility and the potential for further adverse regulatory change. However, it is now our opinion that our FY18 forecasts are in the right ballpark (we still have low conviction in our FY19 forecasts), and thus we increase IG’s valuation multiple to 12x from 10x. We believe that a multiple between our previous valuation multiple (10x) and IG’s longer-term forward P/E multiple (15x) is now appropriate. We continue to incorporate surplus capital in our valuation.

The key reason we downgrade IG to Underperform is because our 510p price target is below the current share price, despite assigning IG a valuation multiple 20% higher than our previous multiple. We believe that the current share price has yet to fully reflect the numerous challenges the business will encounter. Our Underperform rating is based upon (i) regulation contagion to other geographies is likely, (ii) client contraction is possible, yet we do not forecast it, (iii) the dividend policy could be maintained, which would result in a dividend cut, and (iv) financial performance stabilisation and recovery could take longer than we envision.

Took advantage of this mornings dip to buy in again.

Advice required chartists, any comments on Igg at the mo?

Looks like a cross section of the digestive system, if that helps? ;o)

Thanks Harry as you say nothing to see there.

Black Rock add to their above 5% holding.

That chart looks ready to break one way or the other!

Well I hope you're right Skinny as I'm down on these.

Black Rock at it again

Black Rock go above 10% http://http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5516644

Trading statement http://http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5517997

Bit of a shock down 5%!

One of the few rises today on my list so sold out.

Pre-close trading update http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5558358

Looking tidy.

Black Rock Inc. go below 10%... I think but work it out yourselves http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5570490

Finals:http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-detail/IGG/13298142.html

Up nearly 9%!

Back in again.

Out again.

Back in again.

Oh Ohh the okey cokey! :0)

Proving to be cracker so far CC.

Director sells a lot http://http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5641550http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5641550

Added on today's dip.

First Quarter Revenue Update http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5673294

The SP seems to be going in the right direction without news lately.

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group expects net trading revenue in the first half to be around 9% higher than a year ago.

The group said that following a strong first quarter, it continued to perform well in the second quarter.

A pre-close update said: 'Operating costs excluding variable remuneration in the first half of FY18 are expected to be around 7% lower than in the same period a year ago, primarily reflecting a lower level of advertising and marketing spend. '

IG maintains the guidance given in July that operating costs excluding variable remuneration for the full year are expected to remain at a similar level to FY17.

Down 11% after this news http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=5785210

All of the related companies were hit yesterday with tighter regulations, possibly, regarding certain trading.

Is that right CD, just glad I was stopped out last week when they rose for no reported reason.

Back in as the 4%+ drop seems over done.

Interims out tomorrow.

StockMarketWire.com
Trading platform IG said regulatory changes will make it difficult to predict the level of revenue in the short-term after reporting record first half revenue and pre-tax profit.

Revenue is up 10% to £268.4m and pre-tax profit up 29% to £136.2m. Describing new leverage restrictions as disproportionate, the spread betting provider says the financial impact of the mooted ban on binary options and restrictions on CFDs 'is unlikely to be significant in the current financial year'.

However, its says the impact in future years is harder to predict, noting that if the measures currently being considered had been in place in its previous financial year then the reduction in revenue would have been less than 10%.

Came out the day before the Interims and will stay out for a while.

Trend is up.

StockMarketWire.com
IG said it continued to perform well in the final quarter of the fiscal year with net trading revenue for the full year expected to be around £565m, up from £491m on last year.

The group's operating expenses for fiscal 2018, excluding variable remuneration, are expected to be around £254m, up from £253m, in line with the previous guidance, the company said.

The group's charge for variable remuneration is expected to be around £36m, up from £24m.

The group had received around 15,000 applications since November 2017 from clients to elect to be categorised as professional, and 3,800 clients were now categorised as professional, IG said.

Clients categorised as professional contributed over 35% of UK and EU OTC leveraged revenue in the final three months of the financial year. This proportion would rise to 50% when the European Securities and Markets Authority measures come into effect, IG added.

The firm reiterated that revenues would suffer a 10% hit following new regulatory measures announced by European Securities and Markets Authority, leading to a lower fiscal 2019 revenue compared to fiscal 2018.

The company said it expects to return to revenue growth after fiscal 2019.

Chief Commercial Officer Bridget Messer and Chief Information Officer Jon Noble were appointed as Executive Directors to the board, IG confirmed. The appointments would take effect from 1st June 2018.

StockMarketWire.com 24/07/18
IG Group hiked its full-year dividend Tuesday after reporting a 34.4% rise in annual pre-tax profit tax aided by a 16% jump in net trading revenues amid growth across all regions and products.

The company proposed a final dividend of 33.51p a share, taking the full year dividend to 43.2p per share, up 34% from the prior year.

For the year ended May 31, pre-tax rose 31.4% to £280.8m, net trading revenue was up 16% to £569.0m, and operating profit rose 32% to £281.1m.

'The company delivered record revenue, operating profit and earnings in FY18, driven by strong growth across all regions and products, and has continued to make good strategic and operational progress,' said Peter Hetherington, Chief Executive.

Revenue per client rose 10% compared to the same period a year ago. The UK and Ireland saw trading revenue increase 12% to £249.5m while revenue per client increased 21%, offsetting a 7% fall in active clients in the UK to 59.9m from 64.7m.

IGs share dealing & investments segment reported a 67% rise in revenue to £4.0m while revenue per client fell 2% to £113.0 from £115.0.

OTC leveraged revenue rose 16% to £548.4m from £474.6m the previous year as a 2% drop in active clients to 144,600 was more than offset by the 18% increase in average revenue per client to just under £3,800.

Client trading in cryptocurrencies, which accounts for 7% of OTC revenue, had slowed markedly since the end of January, and accounted for 3% of revenue in the fourth quarter.

Revenue in EMEA, which includes EU and IG's subsidiaries outside the EU in Switzerland, Dubai and South Africa, increased 18% to £162.1m. While revenue in APAC increased 20% to £136.8m from £114.1m the previous year.

Record revenue, operating profit and earnings were driven by strong growth across all regions and products as the company braces for the impact of regulatory changes, which take effect in August, and is expected to lower revenue.

ESMA's measures relating to the provision of CFDs to retail clients in the UK and EU will come into effect on 1 August 2018, pressuring fiscal 2019 revenue, which is expected to come in lower than fiscal 2018 revenue.

Ex-div on the 27th of this month.

Yes and a reasonable percentage which is what attracted my attention.
The new regulatory changes might adversely affect the next set of results....possibly, maybe?
Am not a holder at mo.

Also not currently a holder and a bit wary of buying/selling at this time of the year so will continue fence sitting. Been a good earner in the past but it's now and the future that counts as we know.

StockMarketWire.com
IG Group reported Thursday lower fiscal first-quarter revenues as the volume of trading by retail clients was 'significantly' lower across the UK and EU as regulatory measures bite.

For the three months to 31 August, total revenue fell 5% to £128.9m.

The weaker performance was blamed on a fall in active clients in the UK and EU, following the implementation of ESMA measures, which sought to stamp down on the proliferation of CFDs in the retail trading industry.

The UK saw trading revenue fall 8% to £53.9m, while revenue per client increased 6%, partly offsetting a 13% fall in active clients in the UK to 34,000 from 39,200 during the quarter. 'The volume of trading by clients categorised as retail clients in the UK and EU was, as expected, significantly lower in August than in July following the implementation of the ESMA measures,' the company said.

The company reiterated its view that the impact of the ESMA measures on historic revenue would have been a reduction of approximately 10%.

IG Group stressed, however, that is was not possible to 'draw firm conclusions' on the impact of regulations from a one month period as it would "take time for retail clients to adapt to the new rules and change their trading behaviour."

The broker's German subsidiary had secured a licence from BaFin to offer financial services to EU clients, ensuring that its regulated financial products would available in all EU member states following the UK's planned exit.

Well I hope you stayed out Harry as well as currently down nearly 7%!

Yes, we have both dodged that bullet Stan.
Somewhere around the 460p level looks like a good entry point!!!

Certainly so...fence sitting very much underrated -):

CEO leaves with immediate effect http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=6144043

Down over 11%!

I went to the CMC traders evening last week.

They were pretty open that professional traders status was really affecting them and the reduction in margin was pushing their PI customers to providers registered abroad, outside the scope of the MIFID II legislation.

Before the evening I had been refused professional status by CMC. Whilst I was there they agreed to count additional assets not previously countable to get me inside the legislation. Further, they were looking into offshoring clients money so that they were outside the scope of MIFID II.

I expect IG are having the same issues.

Finally there were about 10 PI's at the meeting. As far as I could tell I was the only one trading with real money. Everyone else was paper trading.

The training given by CMC was excellent.

They also have to disclose the percentage of losers on there books now.

Hardly a selling point.

IGG appoint CEO https://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=6186372

Up over 6% on that news so far!

Directors buy https://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=6191491

StockMarketWire.com
Brokerage IG Group warned Tuesday first-half revenue would undershoot that of last year as regulatory measures weigh on new client growth. Revenue in the first half was expected to be around 6% lower on-year, the company said. The number of new over-the-counter leveraged clients who traded for the first time with IG in the period fell 24% to 14,600 from 18,027 a year earlier.

Group revenue in the four month period since all the regulatory measures came into effect was expected to be around 10% lower than in the same period a year ago, the company added.

Revenue in that four month period in the ESMA region (UK and EU) was expected to be around 20% lower, with revenue from the group's business in Asia Pacific and other non-ESMA region countries expected to be around 9% higher.

With regulatory measures continuing to weigh on retail clients, the bulk of UK and EU revenues, around 70%, had been generated by professional clients, the company said.

IG Europe, the group's client facing subsidiary in Germany, had received its licence from BaFin, allowing the group to offer its regulated financial products in all EU member states following the UK's exit from the EU, IG said. At 8:06am: (LON:IGG) IG Group Holdings PLC share price was -29.25p at 579.25p

Down 10 1/2% now, glad I'm out of these at the moment.

IG Group sees no surprises in UK regulator paper on new derivatives rules
StockMarketWire.com
Broking house IG Group said there were no surprises in a consultation paper released on Friday by UK regulators regarding a tightening of trading rules.

The Financial Conduct Authority had released a consultation on restricting contract for difference products sold to retail clients, plus a discussion about other retail derivative products.

'The FCA's proposals have been anticipated by the company, and do not change the company's expectations on performance or group revenue,' IG Group said.

'IG continues to be supportive of the objective of regulators to improve client outcomes in this industry and will continue to engage fully with regulators.'

'In IG's experience, when proportionate regulation has been applied consistently and appropriately, client outcomes have improved, and compliant providers have benefitted over the longer term.'

At 1:40pm: (LON:IGG) IG Group Holdings PLC share price was +4.5p at 559p

i see stuart wheeler founder of IG wants to remain in EU now after donating 600k to the leave campaign...gone long now stuart? how much did you make shorting the markets?

apparently city hedgefunds arent happy with the state of the stock prices...dont worry santa rally may help and city bonuses

Interesting that Maestro, Wheeler's personal website has been taken down as well!

http://www.stuartwheeler.co.uk

Interims on the 22nd coming up.

Interims https://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=6284717

Down 11+% and falling!