PGW - PGG Wrightson

[percy]

Wondered why our butter tasted a bit oily.?

[sb9]

One of the few companies with strong balance sheet to keep divvy payment. Well done PGW board and management!

[Sideshow Bob]

No doubt some of their divisions still operating under essential services for agriculture/food production/animal welfare?

[Snoopy]

One of the few companies with strong balance sheet to keep divvy payment. Well done PGW board and management!

Strong balance sheet? By some company standards, the balance sheet looks OK. But this is a highly seasonal business, which is fully exposed to adverse weather events. IMO no term debt is an optimal capital position and PGW are far from that. Despite the interim dividend, just paid, being higher, whether the final dividend will happen is up in the air in my view. The other 'elephant in the room' is the company superannuation scheme. We were lead to believe that no more capital will need to be injected into it. With a sharp correction in capital markets and even lower interest rates since balance date, I would be very surprised if another substantial capital injection is not required.

No doubt some of their divisions still operating under essential services for agriculture/food production/animal welfare?

Real Estate I suspect will be in lock down. Wool I guess they can stock pile. Livestock trading will still be needed. Buyers and sellers can do a certain amount on the net these days. Yet if I was a farmer, I would still want to eyeball any stock I bought, so actual transactions will probably be well down. I think the retail farm supply business is still in operation, but the front door to the stores is locked. IOW farmers can ring through their orders and PGW will arrange delivery. A large proportion of their sales were arranged by 'direct to farmer' visits before all this hit anyway. Then there is the drought that has fallen from the headlines with the COVID-19 escalation, but has not gone away. Horticulture is going gang busters. But what if the growers can't get the labour to get their fruit off the trees? They could be in strife by the end of the season. I don't think PGW will have an easy six months. But I do think they will come out the other side.

SNOOPY

discl: holder

[Balance]

Horticulture is going gang busters. But what if the growers can't get the labour to get their fruit off the trees? I don't think PGW will have an easy six months.

Talked to my doctor friend yesterday morning who have a number of farmers in his client list - farming families are banding together around the horticultural areas and helping each other out to overcome the labour shortage. Working well.

Times like these, NZ farming community have always always showed their resilience and co-operation.

More so the pity that Labour governments have never appreciated our farmers - preferring to pander to the dole bludgers and state dependents.

[macduffy]

The other 'elephant in the room' is the company superannuation scheme. We were lead to believe that no more capital will need to be injected into it. With a sharp correction in capital markets and even lower interest rates since balance date, I would be very surprised if another substantial capital injection is not required.

Good point, Snoopy. This must be a concern for all companies that still have benefit promise super schemes which are normally based on final salary, or something close to that. Unlike the more popular cash accumulation schemes where members take the risk of fluctuating values, the former remain the company's responsibility/liability. If markets don't recover sufficiently before the next actuarial valuations there could be some difficult decisions to be made.

[sb9]

Bit of rarity in these times to see divvy being paid into your bank a/c...thanks PGW!

[Balance]

There’s food shortage concerns everywhere in the world now - NZ agriculture is very well placed and a company servicing the sector is going to do very well.

[iceman]

There’s food shortage concerns everywhere in the world now - NZ agriculture is very well placed and a company servicing the sector is going to do very well.

Agree Balance. The strong companies coming out of this terrible situation are primary producers of clean and healthy food and their suppliers. Sadly, for a country growing a wide and abundant variety of good food, there is an appalling lack of options to invest in these on the NZX. A few months ago an idea of an index of primary producers was floated but then nothing happened. Now is the time for this.
My NZX portfolio is now 55% in this sector incl a bit of PGW

[JBmurc]

Bit of rarity in these times to see divvy being paid into your bank a/c...thanks PGW!

Yes and keep paying their lease and I'm happy ...unlike many commercial property owners at the moment