Look at those results today.Superbly run business, funding good growth from own cash generation. Regular increases in dividend. Have held for many years within PEP - not one to double overnight, but IMO one for serious investors to lock away for the long term. 10 for 1 share split may help marketability going forward.Always DYOR etc.

PZ Cussons PLC

FORECASTS 2011 2012

Date Rec Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p) Pre-tax () EPS (p) DPS (p)

Panmure Gordon
21-09-10 HOLD 114.00 16.60 6.60 127.00 18.50 7.35

Shore Capital
10-09-10 BUY 112.60 16.10 6.90 123.10 17.50 7.60

The Royal Bank of Scotland NV
08-07-10 HOLD 113.33 15.82 6.77

Milkstone Ltd [R]
15-04-10 BUY 106.00 15.40 6.50

Interesting post from the TMF........

A Stock Market Spending Spree
By

Alan OscroftPublished in Company Comment on 27 September 2010

Unilever and PZ Cuzzons hit the acquisition trail.

People still seem to be fretting about the state of the economy and whether there will be a double-dip recession, with the general outlook from the spending public still being gloomy. And many investors are still afraid to get back into shares, after one of the worst decades the stock market has ever seen.

But the double dip is looking ever less likely, and we are seeing increasing signs of improving business confidence. Things must surely be on the up when we hear news of prudent companies reaching out to make acquisitions, and we two such news items on Monday.

Hair care
The consumer brand giant Unilever (LSE: ULVR) has announced that it is engaged in a $3.7bn takeover of the US based Alberto Culver, to be paid all in cash. And that's a hefty wad of the folding stuff, even for a company as big as Unilever, with its 56bn market capitalization.

But who is Alberto Culver, and what joy will it bring to Unilever shareholders? Well, we can be forgiven if the name of the company isn't exactly on the tips of our tongues, just as Unilever itself is pretty much unknown to most people who buy Unilever brands -- which include such well-known names as Lipton, Knorr, Persil, Dove, Sunsilk, Pond's, Cif, Surf, and Omo.

What Alberto Culver will add to that is its portfolio of successful hair care and skin care brands -- TRESemm Nexxus, V05, St Ives, and Simple. So it's going to become even harder to do the weekly shopping and not buy any Unilever products.

Personal care
With Unilever's sales of personal care products increasing as a proportion of its overall sales mix, this does sound like a profitable acquisition. Unilever's CEO Paul Polman told us "Ten years ago it represented 20% of our turnover; strong organic growth has driven it to now reach over 30%, with strong positions in many of the emerging markets".

That's impressive growth, but perhaps not unsurprising. After all, the quantity of Unilever's food brands that people can actually consume is pretty much anatomically restricted, but the amount people can spend on pampering the external surfaces of their bodies appears to have no such limit.

Bronze bodies
In a not-unrelated business, we also heard news of an acquisition by PZ Cuzzons (LSE: PZC). In a more modestly sized deal, Cuzzons is to buy up St Tropez Holdings Limited from its current owner, the private equity group LDC, for 65.2m, again in cash.

St Tropez is a company that this ageing and exceedingly unfashionable writer hadn't heard of before today, but apparently it makes a range of sunless tanning products, including lotions, mousses and sprays -- the kind of things that lend such a healthy-looking orange colour to so many TV personalities these days.

But though I may scoff at the products themselves, fake tanning does seem to be a business that's on the up, with St Tropez currently selling its products through a number of outlets, including Boots, Superdrug, Debenhams (LSE: DEB), J Sainsbury (LSE: SBRY), House of Fraser and John Lewis. And who knows, the spending squeeze brought about by the depression might have helped, with bottles of tan-coloured paint costing a lot less than the price of an air ticket to go and get the real thing -- and without the skin cancer risk as an added bonus.

Confidence returning
On the face of it, in Unilever and PZ Cuzzons, we are looking at two very different companies. One is a 56bn giant with fingers in many pies, covering a wide range of retail products in a number of sub-sectors. And the other is a much smaller, 1.5bn, company, specialising in personal-care products.

But what they have in common is a long history of steadily growing profits, brought about by prudent management -- they are not reckless spenders, expanding rapidly in boom times and ruing their excesses during darker economic times.

And when prudent companies such as these start flashing the acquisition cash, it really does strike me as a good indicator of returning confidence.

More from Alan Oscroft:

yes looks agood buy considering lloyds paid 70 million for it

62.5m takeover of St Tropez Holdings, the UKs leading maker of sunless tanning products.

Mr Jones at Panmure said the purchase price was attractive and would be immediately earnings accretive offering good growth potential with high margins, and helping to give an even balance of the business across developed and developing markets.

Panmure raised its price target to 400p from 350p, helping lift the shares of the FTSE 250-listed company 1.1 per cent to 369.7p
-----------------------------------------------------------
another story - not bad for a back seat sart up!
Lloyds Development Capital (LDC) - part of part-nationalised Lloyds Banking Group - is said to have hired advisers to tout St Tropez for sale four years after snapping it up for around 70 million.

St Tropez's popularity has soared since its launch in the UK more than 10 years ago thanks to celebrity endorsement from the likes of Victoria Beckham and supermodel Elle Macpherson.

It is believed to have seen profits leap to 4.7 million in 2009 from 2.6 million in 2007 under the guidance of chief executive Michelle Feeney.

The Sunday Times reports that LDC has taken on board investment bank Rothschild to oversee a potential sale as it looks to realise its investment.

Its takeover of St Tropez in March 2006 netted UK founder Judy Naake a multi-million pound windfall.

St Tropez first started in California, but Ms Naake set up the Nottingham-headquartered UK business in 1997 with a 12,000 unsecured loan, selling the self-tan creams from the back of her car.

She started in the sales team for John Player's cigarettes, and later became an agent for French beauty companies Decleor and Darphin before bringing the self-tanning cream from the US to Britain.

The UK range has now developed to offer a host of skincare products sold in stores and online.

LDC was not immediately available for comment.
good story links


http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/michelle-feeney-the-pale-queen-of-st-tropez-2083187.html



http://www.st-tropez.com/

Results today fair, but imo difficult in current trading conditions to justify present rating.Held for a number of years, but now banked profits. Quality business - will look to go back in should they suffer significant fall.

Gone long PZC

One to keep an eye on especially in down markets like we have at present and considered a defensive stock... PZ CUSSONS PZC

have joined you on this one gf. yep again. but only because ive checked out the chart
and most importantly think the risk/reward is acceptable to me. although may not be to all.so please all dyor.
also have high regard for p comments,so hope this fall from high might be considered considerable and worthy of buying back in.
not sure about effect of eu policy regarding scientific proof of need to prove re advertising and marketing of products etc. or if this just relates to other health products. so a ? on this. anyway i'm not a fundy just a charty and as already stated risk/reward is acceptable to me
good luck to all
regards
jkd

JKD I am waiting for June trading statement -year end is 31st May. Held PZC for around 30 years prior to sale in January (wish my timing was always as good!) and it paid for itself many times over. A number of positives and negatives have caused me to keep powder dry so far regarding going back in. Raw materials costs must have risen significantly and not easy to implement price increases in present climate - as Unilever are finding out in China- but PZC do have some pricing power. Nigerian election has seen incumbent retain his position, which should be good news for PZC, but there was some disruption during the process and imo 2011-12 should be much better. Number of exceptional items will also cloud the picture for the current year. I am very much a fundy investor - cannot logically see how charts can predict the future, but each to their own. Good luck - but I hope to join you next month at around 3!

p
thanks for your post. at 3sh i shall probably be out of a proportion of my holding but hopefully still holding the remainder.its just my short/medium term strategy, looking for the remaining balance to eventually turn into a longer term holding.
i appreciate that you are,as you say,very much a fundy investor,so its nice that with each of us having differing applications and analysis that we can be civilised and understanding to each others views.always a pleasure to read your posts.
good luck to you and all existing holders
regards
jkd

A nice rise from good support level.
Goes ex-divi 17th Aug '11

StockMarketWire.com
PZ Cussons Plc confirms that the performance of the Group for the year ended 31 May 2011 has been in line with management expectations.

The Group's balance sheet remains healthy with a continued net funds position following good cash generation during the period.

In Nigeria, trading conditions improved during May following completion of the election process which saw the re-election of the incumbent president. The political and economic outlook for the country looks encouraging as PZ Cussons enters the new financial year.

Asia as a whole has continued to perform well with the positive momentum in Indonesia continuing to deliver profitable growth.

In the UK, whilst the promotional environment and weak consumer demand is resulting in challenging retail trading conditions, the company's focus on brand renovation and innovation has resulted in it maintaining or increasing market shares in our core categories. The more premium brands managed by the newly formed PZ Cussons Beauty Division have continued to perform particularly well.

Trading in Poland and Greece remains difficult due to the ongoing challenging consumer environment.

Across the Group, raw material costs remain at high levels with mitigation plans underway through higher selling prices where possible as well as internal margin improvement projects.

Overall, whilst weak consumer demand in developed markets and high raw material costs remain challenging, the outlook for its more premium brands in the UK and for growth in emerging markets remains positive.

Disappointing trading update today means I have been able to go back into PZC at 3 - may be further to fall short term, but a quality business and having held previously for over 30 years might have to do the same again (or at least my kids will!). Always dyor.

It will be interesting to see what the January interims tell us.

Summary from Panmure gordon:
"A combination of events mean that H1 results will be worse than expected, but it worth stressing that in the core markets (UK, Nigeria, Indonesia) growth has been strong, and while costs are likely to remain high, there wont be significant increases H2 on H2. As such we forecast a return to profit growth in H2, and expect profits to be ahead for the year as a whole. Given the stock issues in Nigeria, we have reduced our year-end net cash forecast from 80m to 45m. We are cutting our price target from 380p to 355p, which equates to 20.0x P/E and 10.9x EV/EBITDA for calendar 2012E.
We maintain our Hold recommendation for now, but we believe the worst of the newsflow should now be out of the way."

p
i would like to see a 30 year chart of this stock. seems no one is able to supply, either on this or any other, unless you know where. anyway i traded and invested as previously suggested.didnt beleive it could ever get back to your 300 buyback in mentioned by you previously but you are spot on, it did and has , and some more.
fortunately for me i was already out of them,at a small profit overall, fortunately for you i sincererly hope you are now back in them at a good price and at a future profit.
the chart suggests to me a future low target of 230/240.I hope i am wrong as i know you dont consider charts meaningful,although it was the chart that helped me exit as markets changed and such changes were indicated by the change in share price as shown on the price chart, often shown by what we might view as the ECG of the individual stock. although not always before the reason is generally known and publicised.such results and readings can be acted upon in advance if one knows how to read an ECG. and few of us do.
after all it is just a chart reading and the doctors and consultants are so efficient.
regards and good luck
jkd

jkd - went back in at £3 in December, when relatvely poor performance flagged up, confirmed by recent figs. Happy to hold for longer term - imo this is a very well run business, presently suffering from the upheavals in Nigeria (where PZ has traded for over 100 years) and exceptional rises in some costs. Family interests still effectively control the business and my fall back situation is that if things stay too difficult they might sell out to a major global player.

Final Results

Highlights

Group

§ Revenue growth of 4.7% despite challenging trading conditions during the year, particularly in Nigeria and Australia

§ Profits impacted, as previously advised, by high raw material costs; a worsening trading environment in the Australian homecare category; and the social and economic tensions in Nigeria

§ Major launch in the UK, post period end, of Cussons Mum & Me, a new brand of personal care products specifically designed for mothers and babies

§ Extension of the Beauty division portfolio with the acquisition of the Fudge hair-care brand in January 2012

§ Supply chain optimisation project underway to significantly reduce the overhead footprint of the Group's manufacturing activities

§ Healthy balance sheet with only a small net debt position at the end of the year

§ Total dividend increased 1.6% year on year reflecting the strong balance sheet and the Board's confidence in the future

Africa

§ Overall increase in revenue of 6.8% reflecting a strong first half but a second half affected by the social unrest in the north of Nigeria and the impact from the fuel duty subsidy reduction

§ Profits lower as a result of the above as well as higher raw material costs

§ Construction of the palm oil refinery with Wilmar on track for completion by the end of the calendar year

Asia

§ Continued positive momentum in Indonesia, with revenue and profit from the market leading Cussons Baby range ahead of the prior year

§ Overall Asian revenue and profits lower due to the challenging trading conditions in the Australian homecare category

Europe

§ Robust performance in the UK Washing and Bathing division driven by brand innovation and renovation despite competitive trading conditions

Speculative punt on the spreads Long @ 303.7 in the fervant hope it bounces of 300.0 (again) in the run up to Interim/AGM on 19th of this month. Target 330.0

Well so far so good as regards bouncing of 300.0 support. Will it climb?

zzzzzz zzzzzz zzzzzz, wake me up when it's all over!