II Editor
24 Feb 2017
NEW ARTICLE: Two great companies for the Share Sleuth portfolio? "Friday evening, country pub, four mates. We're talking about sporting injuries, teenage kids, whether we'll ever see our cheekbones again, that kind of thing. There's a farmer at the bar telling his mates how he's getting twenty, thirty pounds ..."[link]
TX2
20 Jul 2016
Re: Is Wynnstay really bomb proof? Present margins in the feed division seem nearer 1%!The retail,agricultural supplies & pets, business makes nearer 5% net.Making around 2% overall.Falling prices of raw materials for feed probably impact on margins because in a highly competitive market Wynnstay has to cut its own prices before its own more expensive raw materials has worked through the system.Hopefully we will see a modest recovery to 2%!I have held an investment here since 2004 at a sub £2 purchase price.I sold about a third at a higher price than presently;I agree it was probably over valued.It represents about 2% of my equity portfolio and will retain for the present as I think it is a decent business but I agree present growth prospects are limited.
Meanbugger
20 Jul 2016
Re: Is Wynnstay really bomb proof? I have to say I strongly disagree with you. I found it a very lightweight article of little merit.You however raise some good points. All commodity companies carry some risk and the biggest risks are volatility and falling demand. Low milk prices have meant that farmers have been reducing their input costs. This has resulted in demand for compound feed probably falling by 10% this year as farmers switch to straights and forage (pasture and silage). At the same time the cost of components for compound feed such as soya and milling wheat have been volatile making compound feed even less attractive to cash-strapped farmers.Even the retail shops face the same pressures as the high street as farmers can order over the internet. I'd agree that Wynnstay does have some natural resilience but like NWF and Carr's Group it needs a steady flow of acquisitions to generate any growth. Bombproof may just be a euphemism for dull with limited growth prospects.
pharmaspecialist
14 Jul 2016
Is Wynnstay really bomb proof? I would recommend reading Richard Beddard's (Share Sleuth) excellent article on Wynnstay published on this site on 8th July.As usual, I agree with most of Richard's opinions but I wonder if the suggestion that the business is "virtually bomb proof" is just a little over the top. As Richard shows, management has done an excellent job in making the company as resilient as possible but I wonder if any company with an operating margin of around 2% can be regarded as virtually bomb-proof as this type of margin does not allow much room for error or just bad luck. The uninspiring return on capital employed (under 10% for the past couple of years) may reflect this low operating margin. The article also suggests that 55% of farmers' incomes may come from subsidies and that Brexit might have an impact on this. My guess is that Brexit may well be significant since the EU has a reputation of being very generous with its subsidies for farmers, so I do not believe that Brexit will help Wynnstay's already anaemic prospects for profit growth. My opinion is that Wynnstay is, intrinsically, not a virtually bomb-proof company but would agree that management is doing a good job.
mcescher
28 Mar 2016
Solid dividend player with healthy balance sheet. Summary of this report on Wynnstay Group [link]
II Editor
25 Feb 2016
NEW ARTICLE: Ten years of Wynnstay "Steadyish growth in profit has earned Wynnstay a reliable reputation. A closer look at the numbers reinforces it. This is going to be a fairly speculative post, as I haven’t yet read Wynnstay’s older annual reports. I’ve just sucked the data out ..."[link]
II Editor
16 Feb 2016
NEW ARTICLE: Wynnstay: Sell-off achieves fair value "Wynnstay’s share price has lost a lot of the froth that stopped it being an attractive investmentThere are two elements to Wynnstay’s schtick that are somewhat contradictory. The company says growing global population and increasing ..."[link]
TX2
27 Jan 2016
Results Decent results in a difficult market.The lower turnover due to decline in grain/feed prices rather than fall off in business.
glasgowboy
16 Oct 2015
thanks TX funny enough I was thinking of buying Carrs as well ,so any thoughts would be welcome.Have you been to any of the AGM at Wynnstay and if so what feeling/vibe do you get being a long term holder , I hope to add more as a long term holder.
TX2
16 Oct 2015
Re: bought 200 today It is a very good business but the farming market is fairly tough at the moment so probably best not to make a major purchase until you see how the market fairs.I have a reasonable size holding by my standards but it was in the main bought around 11 years ago so stand me at a much lower price.Its competitors NWF & Carr's are also good companies-oddly the only three market listed farm supplies business cover over lapping areas.I am also have been a shareholder in NWF for many years and admit not buying Carr's was mistake esp as I live in Cumbria....
glasgowboy
15 Oct 2015
bought 200 today Hi Everyone ,Bought my first small trace today at 527 (200 shares) let see what happens hoping for long term growth and will add once I feel a bit more confident.
glasgowboy
15 Jul 2015
tx thanks TX
TX2
15 Jul 2015
Re: You will find details on the company website.For the record around 1% of the shares are owned by Directors,about 50%+ owned by local farmers/customers in its area of operation(it was a farmers Co-op for the first 75 years of its life until early 1990s when it became a PLC first listed on OFEX/Plus Markets before moving to AIM),around 25% owned by larger institutions/funds,the remaining 20% or so owned by unconnected private investors,smaller institutional holders,employees etc.
glasgowboy
15 Jul 2015
Hi Everyone thinking of investing for the first time in this company trying to find out in a simple concise way the TOTAL directors holdings can anyone help where is the best place to go ?Thanks
TX2
24 Jun 2015
Interim Results Decent performance especially as core market is difficult at the moment:I don't see any obvious reason for an increase in share price which reflects the present value at the moment but this is a very good business with excellent prospects and I am happy to stay invested in companies like Wynnstay.
