GFS (UK) - G4S PLC

[ASTA]

The stock for your parents portfolio?

 

So as many here are feeling that the current landscape is pretty bare on stock ideas. So was checking out my usual 52 week low list on gurufocus.com and G4S PLC showed up. Only one guru owns it so click it anyways and its tweedy brown global value owns it. So did some research and found out that they up there stake from 3.43% to 5.06% on the 24th of May 2013.

As my parents have more cash percentage wise its not a bad idea to look at as a safe bond (now).

 

Please excuse my very basic researching report and if anyone have some more company info please post.

Cheers     

[AchilliesValue]

Haven't looked into the company as an investment but I know a bit about the business and why the price is low. They really messed up during the Olympics last year. I was living in London at the time and it was a major scandal where approximately 2 weeks before the games were set to start they announced that they wouldn't be able to meet their security contracts because they hadn't hired / trained enough people.  Public shit storm ensued with hearings in Parliament etc. and a lot of members of the British Military that had been set to go on leave had to be called in to work security.

 

John Connolly (former head of Deloitte, smart guy) had been named Non-Exec Chairman about a month before the announcement and had to deal with a lot of the fallout.  I kinda expected to hear Nick Buckles (CEO) quietly resigning several month after the games but seems he managed to salvage his job.  They are a services company in a sense though that does a lot of government work so controversies like this one can do severe damage to the business itself.  But like I said haven't even glanced at the financials.

[ASTA]

I see the Olympic scandal as a plus, people how owned it before that sold.

And a new CEO is always good. My father knew a bit the old CEO when he worked in Africa and said he was a crook so hopefully a better one now. Regarding Africa or other emerging markets. Because they are in general 140 years behind usa for example they need a lot of security. Been in a lot of emerging markets and don't see how g4s and other companies will not grow.

Also found some positive commentary from FPA international. With the pound standing at a reasonable level to USD currency problems minimum. We will see if I buy some home work to be done

Will post if I buy.

[jouni1]

new CEO is always good? they still have buckles on board. usually a new ceo (in a company i'm already invested in) makes me nervous.

 

i think you should look at the financials before buying with your parents' money. i have told my parents to buy indexes when they ask for investment advice.

 

i was looking at this and other european security companies at one point but decided they are way too hard to understand. g4s atleast used to have a load of subsidiaries for different (sometimes shady?) business activities.

[ASTA]

The company was notified on 7 June 2013 by William H. Gates III, that following an acquisition of voting rights, he now holds voting rights over 45,224,081 ordinary shares. This amounts to 3.2% of the company's total voting rights.

 

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3ed1a3da-d1bb-11e2-b17e-00144feab7de.html#axzz2Vi3jPRfx

 

FT article regarding this

[ASTA]

Well who knows what will happen but sold 7% chunk of brk.b and put 7% in this stock yesterday. Felling good today but time will tell :D

[ASTA]

Well sold today at 8% profit shoring up some cash :D

[DamienC]

Cevian, one of the best European activist fund, has recently taken a 5% stake and has said it could buy up to 5% more of the company.

 

They have been relatively active in the UK in the past 2 years

 

They have held a concentrate portfolio historically with 10-15 names

 

Damien

[ASTA]

DamienC

thanks for the info I also heard that. But I think that it was just little bit weak stock in my hand I did not feel to comfortable. Bought AGK with the proceeds :D