Indigovision disappoints again

Those of you who regularly read my blog will know that I have been a holder of Indigovision shares on two separate occasions. The first time I held shares I was lucky enough to crystallise profits of 750%. Relatively recently I took a more modest 50%. I've kept the company on my monitor, but haven't felt inclined to buy back in. I gave my reasons for selling the shares back in November, and after today's trading update I feel justified in having sold when I did. You can read my reasoning below:-

Trading statements and cashing in a 50% profit.

http://michae1mouse.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/trading-statements-and-cashing-in-50.html

The shares slid back 12% today following the trading statement, and I have to say that I won't be buying back in unless the price falls substantially from here.

Back in 2004 when I first bought shares in Indigovision (for about 62p) and they went on to multi-bag, it looked very possible that the company would be a very long term hold for me. However, circumstances changed and it appeared to me that the company had lost their competitive advantage.

This statement today from Marcus Kneen, Chief Executive is very telling :- "We have made progress towards our goal of repositioning IndigoVision to achieve market rates of sales growth..."

There was a time when Indigovision aspired to and briefly did achieve more than the market rates of growth with what appeared to be a market leading position. The company now gives the impression of a being a "me also" company in its sector. Although that may be a little harsh.

The positives for shareholders are that Indigovision is profitable and boasts a strong balance sheet with no debt. It also pays dividends. It's highly unlikely that you're going to lose your shirt with a holding in Indigovision, and I certainly wouldn't dismiss a future bid for the company given the above.

However, it now looks like a company struggling to find momentum for growth, and I don't consider the company is cheap enough to have multi-bagger potential at these levels and so I'll sit on the sidelines for now.

Of course circumstances do change and I'll remain vigilant.

As ever, no advice intended or given. All opinions expressed are my own personal musings.

Nanny doesn't always know best when it comes to Aim

Anybody who invests in companies listed on the Aim market will no doubt be elated that from 5th August these shares will be eligible to be held in tax free ISAS. There's a great article written in today's Sunday Telegraph by Tom Stevenson that echoes my sentiments entirely:-

"Nanny doesn't always know best when it comes to Aim"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/tom-stevenson/10205683/Nanny-doesnt-always-know-best-when-it-comes-to-Aim.html

A good balanced article I would suggest. He's quite right that a large number of companies listed on Aim are not worth a second glance, but if you're a stock picker with a reasonable eye for sifting out the potential disasters from the possible winners then it is an exciting market with opportunities to multi-bag your money.

Is Aim listed Angle (AGL) one to stick into an ISA?

I've mentioned before that this is a speculative investment for me, and full year results will be released on Wednesday of this week. I'm not expecting the figures to be impressive at this stage in it's development, but I will be looking carefully at the narrative.

News to date has given cause for encouragement, and on Thursday 25th July they released news relating to a positive evaluation of the Parsortix System from the Cancer Research UK's Paterson Institute for Cancer Research.

Whilst I won't pretend to understand  the significance of the Parsortix System being "Cell marker (epitope) independent", I am encouraged to read the comments from

The Paterson's Genomics Group Leader and Deputy, Clinical & Experimental Pharmacology, Dr Ged Brady, who commented:

"We see great promise in the Parsortix system with the possibility that it may help broaden our understanding of cancer patient blood borne biomarkers which may in turn eventually help us guide and improve therapy. The major attractions for us are the potential for the system to deliver an increased range and number of CTCs along with simplicity of execution. Initial positive results have resulted in the inclusion of the Parsortix device in our ongoing efforts to deliver personalised medicine."

It's incredibly difficult to say with any certainty what lies ahead for Angle. How much additional funding will they require and how will it be raised? how long will it be before we see significant sales of this device? etc, but if the Parsortix System does live up to it's promises then potentially it could be a very bright future for investors, although I might add the caveat that it's still early days relatively speaking!

I look forward to Wednesday with interest, and as ever no advice is intended or given.

Access Intelligence - interims

Access Intelligence released an encouraging set of figures in their interims this morning with revenues up 6% to £4.2m, contracted revenue not yet invoiced up 25% to £5.5m, and recurring revenue up to £3.0m from £2.7m being 72% of total revenues.

They also recorded a small operating profit of £28,000 before taxes against a loss of £198,000 in the previous half-year.

Cash balances have decreased slightly since the year end to £2.3m from £2.8m due to their previously stated intention to invest in accelerating the growth of the business. Operating activities did generate £0.3m in cash.

Gross margins came in at an impressive 73% up from a healthy 67% last year.

Current trading reads as follows:-

"Despite challenging market conditions, the Group has maintained a strong position in the public and private sectors, with H1 2013 contracted revenue not yet invoiced up 25% to £5.5m (H1 2012: £4.4m), and recurring revenue now representing 72% of the total (H1 2012: 68%).

 

Product innovation remains core to our ability to drive growth in the individual brands, both in their respective markets and as an integrated enterprise solution. This, combined with continued pressure on companies to meet the requirements of external regulators and internal cost management, will continue to drive sales pipeline growth for the Group.

 

The consistent increases year on year in contracted revenue not yet invoiced, our recurring revenue base and investment in innovative product development, demonstrate the Group's long term stability and provide a solid foundation for continued growth."

 

In summary, good solid growth is being achieved and I fully expect the benefits to flow through and become apparent in the medium and long term.

 

I'd expect the company to make a small profit at year end on revenues approaching £10m, if they continue to build revenues in future years then the lion's share of these revenues should fall through to the bottom line and profit growth should be impressive.

 

I feel very comfortable with my investment here, and similar to my investment in Trakm8, will wait patiently for the market to eventually realise the potential.

 

As ever, no advice is intended or given.