WHS - Warehouse Group

[Snoopy]

Smiths City is extremly well run business. The board is excellent,and CEO Rick Hellings is a brilliant retailer.I believe they are trading well in a difficult market.Leemings/Bond and Bond,are not.JBHF are still losing millions in NZ operation.SCY own their own finance company,while the others use GE Money. SCY.Directors,and Hellings have large shareholdings.

To give WHS a bit more context, I think it is interesting to look at Smiths City sales over the last 5 years.

SCY sales

2012F: $221.0m
2011: $220.7m
2010: $226.1m
2009: $227.0m
2008: $252.4m

I could have included the 2007 sales figures to make it look worse, but even so Smiths City sales are down 10% as the GFC has tightened its grip. Part of the problem is that those people who wanted to buy a $3000 flat screen TV five years ago only have to pay around $1500 for the same thing now. And it is unlikely the customers will take that $1500 saved and get a second set for the bedroom! It would be interesting but probably too competitor sensitive if Smiths City were to release their unit sales figures.

To some extent WHS is suffering from the same problem in their 'consumer electronics' department. The 'consumer electronics' collapse is I think a retail wide phenomena, not an internal company problem.

An ace that SCY holds is that they run their own finance company. The finance arm did grow 10% in FY2011 with revenues up from $10m to $11m. But it is still just 5% of total sales and not material to the future of the company in its own right just yet.

SNOOPY

[percy]

Yes you are both right and wrong at the same time.SCY sold their low profit margin building division to Carters so turnover did drop.
Like WHS they do suffer price reductions.
The finance company is very much material to SCY.They are the only retailer of house hold/electrical goods who have their own finance company,so are in a better position to match competitive finance offers.
You will note they have expanded without coming back to sahareholders for more funds,and pay a modest divie.
atailer

[winner69]

I'd say SCY finance arm is critical to the business. If you look at half byear finance made $1.4m while retail lost money. See segmental reporting

Always been like this, a marginal retail business propped up by property and a finance arm

[modandm]

guys just to help out (maybe)

when insto's are talking margins they are referring to operating margins

Operating margins is EBIT/Revenue

This is not the same as gross margin - ie sales-cogs

And yes Instos will have the ear of management - they are the ones that set the price of securities. If they want to see a dividend increase or share buyback or a focus on margins CEO's will hear about it and consider it as part of strategy and decision making. Of course the insto's don't run the companies so management don't have to listen if they don't think it's the right strategy

[winner69]

guys just to help out (maybe)

when insto's are talking margins they are referring to operating margins

Operating margins is EBIT/Revenue

This is not the same as gross margin - ie sales-cogs

And yes Instos will have the ear of management - they are the ones that set the price of securities. If they want to see a dividend increase or share buyback or a focus on margins CEO's will hear about it and consider it as part of strategy and decision making. Of course the insto's don't run the companies so management don't have to listen if they don't think it's the right strategy

....... and if management don't listen to the instos the instos do what? Prob pack a sad and take a dim or dimmer view of the company and lack of full support from the instos puts pressure on the share price.

[percy]

I'd say SCY finance arm is critical to the business. If you look at half byear finance made $1.4m while retail lost money. See segmental reporting

Always been like this, a marginal retail business propped up by property and a finance arm

I have not followed very closely for a couple of years,but you are right on the money as always.They have/do well developing sites for their retail premises.Buy store/site do it up/build as sell off developement with a good retailer as tenant.[them].
With price decreases, increase in insurance ,wages,kiwi saver,increase rents,foreign exchange,fuel cost for delivery and service vehicles, and huge amount of competition it is a very difficult place to be.

[Snoopy]

Yes you are both right and wrong at the same time.SCY sold their low profit margin building division to Carters so turnover did drop.

That was in the first half of FY2007 Percy. So the turnover statistics that I quoted, from FY2008 were not affected.

SNOOPY

[percy]

That was in the first half of FY2007 Percy. So the turnover statistics that I quoted, from FY2008 were not affected.

SNOOPY

stand corrected.

[Jim]

I saw that this dog's closed at $ 2.51 yesterday the yield is almost 8%. I think it is worthwhile to pick up some and don't forget that WOW and Foodstuffs jointly own 10% and WOW might take over this dog and turn it into a swan. And the share price will rocket

[upside_umop]

Foodstuffs and WOW each own 10% (not joint)...both hold blocking stakes from each other and of course S Tindall who wanted to privatise it back in the day...