Up 130% over the last year.
Anyone else watching this one.

Serenely through 45p. +15.4%

Enterprise Inns appoints new chairman

StockMarketWire.com

Enterprise Inns has named Robert Walker to succeed Hubert Reid as chairman.

Walker will join the board as a non executive director and chairman designate following the conclusion of the annual general meeting today (9 February) and assume the role of chairman on 31 March.

Walker is currently chairman of Travis Perkins and Americana International Holdings and senior independent director of Tate & Lyle.

He was previously chairman of WH Smith, Williams Lea Group and BCA Europe.

He was also group chief executive of Severn Trent and has held a number of FTSE100/250 board appointments with BAA, Severn Trent, Signet Group, Thomson Travel and Wolseley.

Back in auction +18.9%.

Morgan Stanley from below 3% to above 5%.

Morgan Stanley from below 3% to above 5%.

Hic!

Morgan Stanley above 9%.

Looking strong again here.

And again on an otherwise sh*te day.

Added to BULLISH TRENDING Charts On CHAR thread tonight.

Off too a positive start.

Interim Results.

Highlights

Ø EBITDA (pre-exceptional items) £168m (H1 2011: £179m)
Ø Like-for-like net income in substantive estate up 1.5% (H1 2011: down 1.5 %)
Ø Like-for-like net income in total estate down 1.6% (H1 2011: down 5.0%)
Ø £89m of disposal proceeds has contributed to a reduction in net debt to £2.9bn (H1 2011: £3.1 bn)
Ø Purchase and cancellation of £29m Unique A4 securitised bonds ahead of schedule; purchase and cancellation of additional £10m A4 and £2m A3 bonds since period end
Ø Appointment of Robert Walker as Chairman

Statutory results

Ø Profit before tax and exceptional items £64m (H1 2011: £74m)
Ø Profit before tax £64m (H1 2011: £61m)
Ø Adjusted earnings per share 9.6p (H1 2011: 10.8p)

Panmure Gordon Reiterates it's Buy TP 87p.

Numis Reiterates it's Buy TP 100p.

Peel Hunt Upgrades to Hold TP 70p.

Interim Management Statement

Highlights

· Continuation of improving trading trends, with like-for-like income per pub up 1.6% in the substantive estate.

· Like-for-like income in the total estate down by only 1.2% (down 5.1% in the same period last year and down 1.6% in the first half).

· Total proceeds from disposals of £148 million in the financial year to date.

· Bank borrowings net of cash reduced to £364 million (£446 million at 30 September 2011).

Enterprise Inns rises 7.7 percent, after the pubs operator posts higher income for the 18 weeks to Aug. 4.

"Given the improving trading trends and falling bank debt, we think the stock continues to offer significant upside potential," Panmure analysts write in a research note, keeping a "buy" rating on Enterprise Inns shares

Tempus is keener on Enterprise Inns, the pub company that has been struggling under a debt mountain. Some sensible disposals of non-performing pubs (as well as some very good ones) is beginning to get the financial house in order, while the Euro 2012 football and Diamond Jubilee both lifted the third quarter numbers. Tempus thinks Enterprise Inns has some way to go, buy.

Strong today on good volume.

And again today.

Enterprise Inns gained 4% today to hit a new 52-week high of 76.25p, although at the time of writing the price has dropped back a fraction to 75.5p. The shares have done remarkably well this year, having almost trebled from their January low point of 26.5p.

Although there is no resumption of dividends expected after they were canned in 2010, City forecasts put the shares on a P/E for the year to September of just 3.5. While August's interim update looked positive, the pub group still has very significant debts, but they are reducing.