VOD & NG have both recovered the pre ex price quickly this time around and are both near or at 12 month highs.

Come on back baby.....up you come......225pwould be nice

up nearly 3% again today, come on you know you want too.,.

AGM Statement and Q1 IMS

At the current sp 215p ish, FGP are now a penny or two above the price prior to them going ex-divi, so could sell now without loss and have the 16.05p divi to come. Simples. So why didn't I do it.
2517

Yuo got in better than me geogre, 228p for me so am waiting a bit longer.,.

do i go or do i stay.............. decisions decisions.,.

BB - this is probably helping over the last couple of days - FirstGroup trumps Virgin as frontrunner for west coast rail franchise

glad i stayed, how far will it go is the next question.,.

238p in profit, must watch carefully through August when decision is made for franchise. Many thanks skinny for info.,.

Balerboy - you may find this interesting.


An increasingly bitter competition for control of the West Coast Main Line was branded a "shambles" yesterday as anticipation mounted that Virgin Trains could be shunted off Britain's railways. Louise Ellman, chairman of the Commons Transport Select Committee, has joined unions and industry experts in urging the Government to think carefully before handing a franchise to operate London-to-Glasgow trains to FirstGroup, a rival to Virgin. FirstGroup has offered to pay nearly £7bn in profits to the Government if it wins a 14-year contract to operate the line from December, when the existing franchise expires. Its bid is about £1bn higher than Virgin's offer but will involve deep cost-cutting, The Times says.

we don't know when in August the decision is to be made do we skinny?

Threat to Richard Branson’s train empire

Virgin’s presence on Britain’s rail network could be derailed as FirstGroup offers £1bn more for the West Coast franchise.

13th August is the day.

Thanks UB

look at this one go so glad i didn't bale out....... smug look on face .,.

Well done relaybob, so sorry I didn't get in after I flagged it up, I attribute that to my HFD experience. However my strategy to buy prior to going ex-div has worked well with FGP not quite so well with HFD, but improving as the sp rises.
2517

Monday will be the day, if they get the franchise might go to £3.,.

Virgin prepares for legal fight over West Coast line

Virgin Trains is preparing for a legal fight over its last remaining rail franchise, as ministers prepare to award the contract for the prestigious West Coast line to rival FirstGroup.

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Trains will push for a judicial review if the Department for Transport awards the 14-year franchise to FirstGroup this week as expected, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt.

Virgin has been operating West Coast services between London and Scotland for 15 years through a joint venture with Stagecoach. However, insiders say Virgin Trains now faces an uncertain future, with one senior source warning: "It could be farewell to Virgin Trains."

FirstGroup is thought to have made what industry insiders describe as a "suicide" offer of £6.5bn-7bn to run the West Coast line, outbidding Virgin, its closest competitor for the franchise, by about £1bn.
Dutch train company, Abellio, and France's SNCF are believed to have bid close to, or below, the £5bn mark.