Character Group (The) Live Discussion

BruceZimbo 25 Feb 2020

Star wars merchandise ....CCT Thanks Bowman for the response and interesting takes on the situation. All a bit depressing really, particularly for a share that was doing so very well before unravelling really rather quickly! It is a shame about the Star Wars merch if you are right about that …the Mandellorain has brought a whole new driving factor in that regard and I was hoping they would still be at the helm of that merch! Good about Peppa, but SW will be a big mover this year IMO. I remain inested as a long log term holder and remain optimisitic that thins are not as bad as the seem!! Interesting comments on the China front too …something I had not put as much value in but you are right! Thanks again and best of luck Bruce

Bowman 24 Feb 2020

Star wars merchandise ....CCT Bruce, I looked at the 2019 Annual Report and there is no mention of Star Wars being in the portfolio of products. So if they do have a licence it is of little or no consequence since it is not mentioned. Again the only news I have seen about the Peppa Pig situation is what is quoted on page 6 of the Annual Report. Following the announcement in August this year of the proposed takeover of Entertainment One Limited (“E1”) by Hasbro, Inc., it was gratifying to note that our current Peppa Pig licence was extended until 30 June 2021. Additionally, we are delighted to announce that yesterday we signed an additional, new licence with E1 to produce a range of wooden Peppa Pig toys and products. This new multi-territory licence deal (which includes Europe and Australia) will run through to December 2022. The initial reaction to the concepts, product ideas and designs for this wooden range from our customers has been extremely positive. The line, likely to be launched in July 2020, seems to be assured of good retail support, given its strong sustainable, recyclable and environmentally friendly credentials. I suspect we will not hear anything further on this until the end of 2020 at the earliest, although there may be some mention in the 2020 interim results due in April or the Trading Update due in September. I suspect that the Scandinavian situation, the possible effects of Brexit, and the rather gloomy AGM statement are still weighing on sentiment, which is why they have continued slipping. Also I am unsure how much the whole Covid-19 situation is affecting their manufacturing, supply chain and distribution. I think this aspect could result in further pressure on the SP, unless the situation in China starts improving and factories etc. start reopening. Overall I do not think there will any significant improvement in the SP in the near future, the best that we can hope for is a stabilisation of the SP at around the 200 mark.

BruceZimbo 24 Feb 2020

Star wars merchandise ....CCT Do CCT still have the license to the Star Wars merchandise? Have there been any changes in this regard that anyone is aware of? Also, has anyone heard any further news or otherwise RE the Peppa Pig situation. The price continues top fluctuate at this new low level and is not showing many signs of recovery - any comments from anyone? Regards Bruce

Bowman 23 Aug 2019

Reason for CCT price drop Just looked at the longer-term chart, and I see that the drop today did not return us to the levels seen after the Toys-R-Us problems. At the time there was a bit of discussion of exactly how the loss of this major Customer would affect the bottom line. Subsequent events showed that the market reaction was overdone. cct.jpg1240x908 263 KB I think that this could be the case here, especially since the Peppa Pig licence has about 2 more years to run. In addition, the Hasbro takeover is not yet a done deal, and counter-bidders could enter the fray. Whilst Hasbro might have a major interest in the toys business (which could affect CCT), other bidders might not be interested in that part of the business, in which case the impact on CCT might be negligible. The length of the licence validity also gives CCT plenty of time to minimise the effect of the loss of the licence (if this is actually what happens) by seeking alternative licences or developing other parts of their business. It will be interesting to see how the market reacts over the coming months. I hope the above proves correct since I added a small top-up to my holding this afternoon, since I still have belief in the underlying business and the capabilities of the management.

Bowman 23 Aug 2019

Reason for CCT price drop I noticed that the sp dropped significantly this morning ( down ~20% to 425p), but have been unable to ascertain a reason for the drop. The only indicator I found was on ADVFN where the drop was being linked to the Entertainment one takeover. Peppa Pig os one of the leading ranges being sold by CCT, and there is a suggestion that marketing of Peppa Pig toys will be taken in-house in Hasbro, which would adversely affect CCT’s profitability. Reading the CCT Reports it appears that the Peppa Pig range is actually produced by CCT, and it is difficult to see how Hasbro could take this over, although it is possible that the licence to use the Peppa Pig name might be renegotiated / cancelled. Does anybody else have an input on this drop, or is it a classic case of market over-reaction (in a thinly traded share), which would imply a good chance of a substantial bounce coming in the next week or so?

Bowman 13 Dec 2018

CCT - Slime toy safety concerns This morning’s report about the “Which” report **[click here to view]**on the safety of some Slime toys may be the reason for the slight drop in SP today. CCT needs to issue a RNS clearly stating whether or not their toy range is affected by this report, otherwise speculation on the effect on CCT will take over and drive the SP down again.

Bowman 14 Sep 2018

CCT - September 2018 Trading Update Todays’s Trading Update [click to view] seems very positive, which is unusual in light of recent retailing gloom, and bodes well for the forthcoming final results. We have had a good run up since last November, although this has dropped off somewhat recently. Hopefully we can now see a return to the upward movement, and we can clear the resistance that appears to exist in the low to mid-500’s. cct.png2812x2054 259 KB

II Editor 23 Mar 2018

NEW ARTICLE: A system that picks shares for the future "   Before I share the latest update from my Decision Engine, a reader, let's call him Leo, comments by email:"I'm... wondering how Finsbury [Food] slipped through the cogs of the engine! Too much oil in the crankshaft perhaps?"I need to tell Leo ..."[link]

II Editor 16 Mar 2018

NEW ARTICLE: The shares are cheap, but this is a question of Character "Toy designer LSE:CCT:Character Group is a highly profitable enterprise valued at just nine times adjusted profit in the year to August 2017. It looks like a bargain, but there's a saying about cut price goods: They're not bargains unless you ..."[link]

Bowman 14 Mar 2018

Strange Back in September/October last year there was a large drop in the sp that was put down to the problems with Toys-R-Us. The SP has recovered quite a bit of the drop since.There have been several announcements concerning what is happening to Toys-R-Us , with the latest today concerning the closure of all Toys-R-Us shops in the UK. This announcement does not appear to have affect the CCT SP at all this time.It will be interesting to see what CCT have to say with the Interim results at the end of April, about future impacts of the closure of a large customer.

Bowman 14 Jan 2018

Re: Director bonus Look at page 17 of the report you referenced."Each of the executive directors is also entitled under the terms of his service contract to a bonus in the event that specified performance targets are met or exceeded. These targets are based on certain profit levels being achieved in each financial year of the Group, adjusted to exclude certain exceptional non-trading items. Messrs Diver, Shah and Kissane are also entitled to a further bonus of 4%, 2% and 1% respectively of the consolidated, pre-tax profits of the Group in the event that a specified minimum target is met or exceeded. "I would suggest that the bonuses were paid because the "targets" were met. I doubt that these targets are for an annually rising level, merely minimum absolute levels that need to be achieved.The shareholders do not set the Director's remuneration, and hence have little influence on what is paid.The Company is still profitable so I do not see too much of an issue.

glasgowboy 14 Jan 2018

Director bonus Page 40 of report Sorry Mr Kissane was £523k Mr Shah was £723k

glasgowboy 14 Jan 2018

Director bonus Need some feedback I have just noticed based on the Annual Report year ended 31 August 2017[link] the following directors received 'performance bonus' in 2017 of the following Mr Diver just over £ 1 millionMr Shah 746kMr Kissane 576k In 2016 the amount was similar I have no problem if they are performing clearly the last 2 years they have not been performing so how can they justify the excessive bonuses ,Would be interested in fellow investors thoughts NB AGM is next Friday I am going to try and attend and will ask them this question

Bowman 13 Oct 2017

Re: Buy back legality There is nothing illegal at all.Insider dealing is using information that is not available to the general investing public. In this case CCT made a normal announcement of facts and trends, to make the investing public aware of what could be coming. The market reacted to this news and the SP dropped. The Directors saw a normal trading opportunity, of what they saw as an overreaction to the news and they took advantage of it just as any normal investor would do.It would be a dereliction of their duty to the shareholders if they were to wait for the SP to rise before proceeding with a buy-back. I do not adhere to the current conspiracy theory environment that would suggest that the Director's pronouncements on the state of trading portrayed the situation as worse than it is just to trigger a drop in the SP. Let us face it the number of shares purchased was still fairly small!

CharlesBP 12 Oct 2017

Buy back legality Is it legal for a company to announce a fall in profits and then buy back some of its shares at the reduced price? It seems to me to have some of the elements of insider dealing, or do I misunderstand the term?