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Mark Wheeler, CEO and Charlotte Parsons, CFO of Driver Group held an online Investor Presentation covering highlights of Interim Results for the six months to end March 2024.
Management provided operational, financial and regional updates, including the Middle East and APAC returning to profitability, good progress on the Group's transformation strategy, the opportunity for M&A, and increasing Diales’ expert headcount. The team discussed the share buyback programme and answered a range of questions submitted by viewers.
The full video has been divided into chapters, as below:
0:00:03 Introduction
0:00:49 Service Offerings
0:03:59 Operational Highlights
0:06:54 Financial and Regional Updates
0:09:34 Cash flow Bridge
0:11:10 Outlook, Summary and strategic update
0:15:12 Questions & Answers
Link to video: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/driver-group-investor-presentation-12-june-2024-interim-results
The strategic plan implemented in late CY22 is working, with utilisation levels benefitting from the move to a hub-and-spoke operational model and a return to profitability in the smaller Middle East and APAC regions.
H2 24 has started positively, particularly in Asia, as the relatively new office in Seoul is delivering on its early promise. The order pipeline continues to expand, benefitting from the rise in expert headcount. The Board has set aside £1m of ‘excess cash’ to buy back shares and to evaluate M&A in existing and related sectors.
We maintain our fair value of 40p/share. With a sector-leading yield, currently standing at 6.0% for FY24, compared to the average of its peer group of 0.5%, Driver’s share price remains undervalued relative to a basket of its peers and is heavily backed by cash and the NAV.
Link to research report: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/interim-results-good-start-to-q3-pipeline-growing
Driver Group PLC (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, providing multi-disciplinary consultancy services including expert witness, claims and dispute resolution services, will be conducting a presentation covering its Interim Results for the six months ended 31 March 2024.
The online event will be hosted by Mark Wheeler, CEO and Charlotte Parsons, CFO and will take place at 12.00pm on Wednesday 12th June.
Questions can be submitted during the presentation to be addressed at the end.
The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders - you can sign up to register here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/news-and-events/drivergroup-investor-presentation-12june2024
Yeah right you'll be in at 20
Tp 15p----
The pre-close trading update from Driver Group delivered encouraging progress overall, with the smaller regions returning to profitability and a positive performance in the UK and Europe. The cost rationalisation was completed during the period following the move to a smaller London office. Cash continues to remain high, representing 32% of the market capitalisation.
The strategy put in place in H2 of FY23 is expected to deliver higher revenues and profitability ahead of 2027, not least reflecting the focus on added-value expert services.
We see little reason to adjust our 40p fair value/share, with no change to estimates. The share price remains below the NAV currently and is underpinned by cash.
Link to research report: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/trading-update-activity-remains-on-budget
Mark Wheeler, CEO and Charlotte Parsons, CFO of Driver Group presented highlights of their Preliminary results for the 12 months ended 30 September 2023, which included a strong turnaround in profitability, action taken on costs and improved levels of utilisation.
The team also outlined their integrated transformation strategy, which will rebrand the global business to Diales, implement a hub and spoke model, reset relationships with overseas offices, and expand the business's service offering to hire key work winners in adjacent sectors (aerospace, financial forensics, IT and marine). Management also answered a wide range of questions from viewers.
The full video has been divided into chapters, as below:
0:00:00 Introduction & Service Offerings
0:02:47 Operational Highlights
0:03:56 Financial & Regional Updates
0:08:08 Cash Flow & Profit Bridges
0:09:23 Transformation Strategy (Vision, Key Actions)
0:20:11 Questions & Answers
Link to video: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/driver-group-investor-presentation-preliminary-fy-results-december-2023
Research report with audio summary now available: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/new-strategic-plan-to-further-improve-margins
FY23 preliminary results delivered a strong turnaround in profitability on modestly lower revenues, highlighting action taken on costs and improved levels of utilisation. With a solid foundation now in place, we expect the new strategic plan to deliver an uplift in gross margins of c. 20% by the end of FY27. With plans in place to expand top line revenues plus a focus on added value expert services and related sectors, the outlook is bright and not yet reflected in the company’s current valuation in our view.
Year-end cash made up 42% of the Group’s market capitalisation and 37% of the NAV. This values the underlying business on modest ratings. We retain our 40p fair value / share which will be re-assessed as earnings momentum feeds through.
Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries will be conducting a presentation covering its Preliminary results for the 12 months ended 30 September 2023.
The online event will be hosted by Mark Wheeler, CEO and Charlotte Parsons, CFO and will take place at 12.00pm on Thursday 14th December.
Questions can be submitted during the presentation to be addressed at the end.
The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders - you can sign up to register here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/news-and-events/drivergroup-investor-presentation-14december2023
Driver (LON:DRV) - Strategy on track, despite timing issues (new research report available here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/strategy-on-track-despite-timing-issues)
Driver Group has issued a trading update earlier than normal, citing a weak Q3 (reflecting a combination of timing issues and the later Easter) as reasons. Nevertheless, Q4 has witnessed a return to more normal patterns of trading and coupled with the rationalisation programme yet to impact results and the pipeline of orders looking more encouraging, we think the medium-term outlook appears favourable. The further improvement in net cash levels provides the Board with opportunities, not least in its capital allocation policy, including the further return of cash to shareholders. The NAV remains above the current share price.
We expect the NAV to decline modestly during H2, reflecting the slight reduction in profitability. However, at c.£15.8m / 29p per share, which is 8% above the current share price, this provides healthy support for the shares. With the current share price now below levels of previous buybacks and net cash higher during H2, we remain positive over the medium-term.
Reflecting the timing issues witnessed during H2, we reduce our fair value / share from 49p to 40p.
Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, conducted a live investor presentation covering their Interim results for the period ended 31st March 2023.
Mark Wheeler (CEO) and Charlotte Parsons (CFO) ran investors through highlights of the Half Year, which included a return to profit at Group level, improving utilisation, a cost reduction programme and an improving pipeline of global enquiries. Management also answered a range of questions submitted by viewers.
If you missed the live event, the full presentation recording is available here and has been divided into chapters as below:
0:00:44 Service Offerings
0:06:17 Operational Highlights
0:07:48 Financial and Regional Updates
0:11:41 Cash flow Bridge
0:13:05 Summary & Outlook
0:16:15 Questions & Answers
Link to video: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/driver-group-investor-presentation-interim-results-june-2023
The interim results from Driver Group were ahead of the profits guidance provided during the pre-close update in late April. Progress on costs has been made as the rationalisation programme has kicked in.
The EuAm (Europe & the Americas) region has generated a strong performance, with revenues and profitability at record levels and there is further scope on margins and utilisation levels. The smaller regions produced an improved performance, with expectations of delivering profits for the full year. Cash generation remained positive, with net cash amounting to over 30% of the market cap and NAV.
Despite the ongoing suspended estimates, the Group is on the path to recovery from FY22. We think the discount to the forward price/book ratio of its peers is too high, particularly in view of the cash.
https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/fires-extinguished-recovery-builds
Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, providing multi-disciplinary consultancy services including expert witness, claims and dispute resolution services, will be conducting a live investor presentation covering their Interim results for the period ended 31st March 2023.
Mark Wheeler (CEO) and Charlotte Parsons (CFO) will host the online event on Thursday 15th June at 10.00am.
Questions can be submitted before and during the presentation, and will be addressed at the end of it.
The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders and you can sign up here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/news-and-events/driver-group-results-presentation-15june2023
Full new research note with audio summary from Equity Development available here:
https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/welcome-news-of-progress
The pre-close trading update from Driver Group was encouraging, with static revenues (signifying rising productivity), improving profitability and margins, and the move into the black for the first time in two years within the Middle East region. Cash levels continued to improve, highlighting the collection of doubtful debts and higher profitability. We expect the solid foundations put in place by the management team over the last 12-18 months will provide a strong base from which to grow meaningfully over the medium term.
Although our estimates remain suspended pending further visibility, we note the NAV (FY22 end: £16.4m or 30.3p / share) and net cash account for 35.1% of the market cap. DRV’s wider consultancy peer group, trades on an average prospective P/B ratio of 4.4x, suggesting that a re-rating of DRV shares looks overdue now that an inflection point has been passed. Our fair value/share remains 49p.
Full video recording now available *** Results investor presentation (Feb 2023)
The management of Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, conducted a live presentation and Q&A session covering their Preliminary results for the 12 months period ended 30 September 2022.
Mark Wheeler (CEO) and Charlotte Parsons (CFO) took investors through operational highlights with financial and regional updates, which included the 'reset' of the Middle East region, a strong start in Q1, ambitions to hit 80% utilisation rate, and an ongoing net cash position. Management also answered investor questions on a wide range of topics.
The full video has been divided into chapters as below:
0:00:03 Introduction & Agenda
0:01:17 Service Offerings
0:08:03 Operational Highlights
0:10:57 Financial and Regional Updates
0:16:24 Cash flow and Profit Bridges
0:17:22 Summary and Outlook
0:20:33 Questions & Answers
Link to full video: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/driver-group-fy-results-investor-presentation-feb-2023
Link: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/a-profitable-start-to-the-new-year
The new financial year has started strongly with a strong pipeline of opportunities and a lower cost base following an expanded rationalisation programme that resulted in most regions delivering a profit YTD in FY23. The results for FY22 were broadly in line with revised expectations, although the lack of forward visibility results in a continued suspension of estimates. That said, we expect FY23 to prove to be a turning point in the Group’s fortunes as utilisation levels improve now that projects are serviced globally.
We are still suspending estimates reflecting a lack of visibility and ongoing uncertainty. While this makes the construction of forward-looking valuation models difficult, we highlight the NAV and within this the level of net cash at the FY22 year end. A historic FY22 price/book ratio amounts to 1.0x, on a book value of £16.4m, which equates to 29.8p/share. Furthermore, £4.9m or 9.1p/share of this is in cash, representing 30.7% of the Group’s NAV.
Comparing DRV to a wider consultancy peer group that trades on an average historic P/B ratio of 4.7x, suggests that DRV (on 1x NAV) remains significantly undervalued. We retain our fair value/share of 49p.
Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, is pleased to announce that their CEO, Mark Wheeler and CFO, Charlotte Parsons, will conduct a live presentation and Q&A covering their Preliminary results for the 12 months period ended 30 September 2022.
The event will take place at 3.00pm on Thursday 23rd February.
The online presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders - you can sign up to register here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/news-and-events/driver-group-fyresults-presentation-23feb2023
need to see management actually execute
tp 18p
Full note accessible here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/a-sturdier-foundation-with-positive-momentum
Management has undertaken a significant rationalisation programme, successfully commissioned new ERP software, and explored means of reducing central costs to place the Group on a sounder footing moving forward, following an extremely challenging FY22 for Driver Group. The actions are paying off, with Q1 ’23 moving into profit, with further progress anticipated from Q2 onwards.
While it is difficult to assess the valuation of a business with no published estimates, what is very clear is the direction of travel. The significant cost reductions across the business, coupled with the focus on higher margin areas is highly likely to result in a marked turnaround in profitability during FY23. In fact, the new year has started strongly, with further progress likely in Q2. The one known is the net asset value at H1 ’22, of £20.2m or 39p/share. Of this, net cash amounts to £4.8m. Its global consulting peer group trades on a prospective December ’22 price/book ratio of 4.5x, significantly ahead of DRVs 0.7x. As such, we retain our previous fair value/share of 49p.
*** Interim Results - investor presentation (June 2022) - video recording now available ***
Driver Group plc, leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, presented their Interim results for the period ended 31st March 2022.
Mark Wheeler (CEO) and Charlotte Parsons (incoming CFO) took investors through the highlights of the period and provided a Business, Strategy and Regional update.
They explored the steps they have taken in the Middle East and APAC to mitigate drags on profitability, and why they expect margin and utilisation rates to improve from here.
The full video recording is available below and has been divided into chapters:
0:00:03 introduction
0:01:27 Business Update & Financial Overview
0:07:17 Strategy Update
0:15:22 Regional Update
0:21:19 Questions & Answers
Link to video: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/interim-results-investor-presentation-june-2022
#DRV Driver Group is reaching an inflexion point as it looks to focus operations on the more profitable and less risky geographical regions. Following the H1 period end, management transferred 25 staff in the UAE and Malaysia and several contracts to an unnamed Counterparty in exchange for an advance payment of trade receivables (£2m) and help to collect further monies owed to the Group. As measured by adj. PBT, the interim results were in the middle of the guidance range. We think the resulting reduction in the cost base to the lowest annualised run rate since FY15 is likely to have a significantly positive impact on profitability.
Interestingly, after stripping out the net cash / share (7p) the shares are trading on just 2.9x peak earnings (FY14). Our fair value estimate is unchanged at 49p / share and based on a heavily discounted peer group valuation model.
https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/inflexion-point
*** Save the Date! 15th June investor presentation ***
Driver Group plc (AIM: DRV), the leading global professional services consultancy to the construction and engineering industries, is pleased to announce that their CEO, Mark Wheeler and CFO-designate, Charlotte Parsons, will conduct a live presentation and Q&A covering their Interim results for the period ended 31st March 2022.
The event will take place at 2.00pm on Wednesday 15th June.
The online presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders - you can sign up to register below:
https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/news-and-events/driver-group-results-presentation-15june22
*** New note published today - 'An Elegant Solution' - from Equity Development ***
Full link & Audio summary here: https://www.equitydevelopment.co.uk/research/an-elegant-solution
The decision to transfer the bulk of Driver Group’s UAE office to a Counterparty solves an ongoing cash collection issue and saves on exceptional (and cash heavy) costs at the same time: a masterstroke in our opinion. The level of cost savings will be a multiple of previous expectations, with improved cash flow, profitability, and higher consultant utilisation levels in Europe another positive side effect. This elegant solution gives confidence in the strength of leadership now in situ within the Group.
Not only has the transfer elegantly solved several problems, but it has also de-risked the Middle Eastern region for Driver Group. The receipt of £2m as of 1 June results in net cash of c.£5.3m, ahead of normal operational requirements. On this basis, Management has considered a return of cash to investors – which we believe could come in the form of either a special dividend or a share buy-back programme.
or 4 !
we could be the 3 musketeers.lol.