During my recent research into restructuring the BizNews share portfolio, I spent a lot of time looking at Murray & Roberts, the one-time construction giant that has transformed itself into a global engineering group.
My interest was first piqued when it popped up as one of the Top Five holdings in John Biccard’s Ninety One Value Fund. Biccard has a long history of discovering undervalued stocks. It grew as I saw the share price halve from R12 to under R6 in just over a month. From all the official info available to investors, this collapse in the price seemed senseless.
Results for the year to end June were below the market’s expectations, but M&R still posted delivered strong revenue growth (R30bn from R21bn) and posted a hefty profit (EBIT of R705m v R540m). Details in the annual report reflected management’s confidence in a five year turnaround plan, delayed but on track.
___STEADY_PAYWALL___Yet the share price kept falling. Yesterday we discovered why when M&R disclosed it will report a loss for the half year to December due to supply chain disruption and delays in payments. Someone knew something and used it to their advantage. That’s called insider trading. It’s a criminal offence. I trust the JSE’s Surveillance Department is paying attention.
More for you to read today:
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- The man who said Ukraine would win. ‘The real reason Putin has not succeeded,’ says Bernard-Henri Lévy, is that his opponents ‘know why they fight.’
- Liz Truss under threat: How UK Tories get rid of their leaders. Liz Truss’s UK premiership hangs in the balance after she was forced to abandon large swathes of her economic agenda and ditch her chancellor following a market rout.
- How to get your public-speaking mojo back. Addressing a crowd is the stuff of nightmares for many. These tips will get your presentation skills back on track.
After a decade in the wilderness, South African banking shares are coming back into their own with positive winds now filling their sails. In this interview, world class financial services analyst Kokkie Kooyman shares his best ideas – offering strong recommendations for three JSE-listed banking stocks and some even cheaper names from Europe, including a wild card from Greece. He also addresses concerns about the impact of SA’s potential grey-listing. He spoke to Alec Hogg of BizNews.
The BizNews Premium Podcast
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