Friday, August 12, 2005
Ben Bailey results hit portfolio hard
I've said previously how August will see the arrival of some crucial news for my portfolio, interim results from Ben Bailey and my largest holding, Fayrewood.
Ben Bailey kicked off the month and kicked my returns hard in a painful place. Bailey's results statement revealed an 8% fall in profit for the period compared with the previous year despite a 22% rise in turnover. Ben Bailey managed to sell more houses at higher prices but the cost of building and selling those houses rose substantially. The shares plummeted 13% on the day of the announcement and currently linger at 370p versus my original purchase price of 390p.
Fortunately, Ben Bailey is no longer the huge portion of my portfolio it used to be. The largest portion of my stake was sold at 473p in April to buy Fayrewood at 111.5p in April. That trade is now showing a profit, but its success is heavily dependent on Fayrewood's own interims, due on the 24th.
A big question mark looms over Ben Bailey however. What now is a fair price for the shares and what does the future hold for the company, in what has clearly become an increasingly difficult market to operate in?
The Artful Dodger
Ben Bailey kicked off the month and kicked my returns hard in a painful place. Bailey's results statement revealed an 8% fall in profit for the period compared with the previous year despite a 22% rise in turnover. Ben Bailey managed to sell more houses at higher prices but the cost of building and selling those houses rose substantially. The shares plummeted 13% on the day of the announcement and currently linger at 370p versus my original purchase price of 390p.
Fortunately, Ben Bailey is no longer the huge portion of my portfolio it used to be. The largest portion of my stake was sold at 473p in April to buy Fayrewood at 111.5p in April. That trade is now showing a profit, but its success is heavily dependent on Fayrewood's own interims, due on the 24th.
A big question mark looms over Ben Bailey however. What now is a fair price for the shares and what does the future hold for the company, in what has clearly become an increasingly difficult market to operate in?
The Artful Dodger
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