Manufacturing

In the space of a fortnight, Treasury Wine Estate (ASX: TWE) has dismissed reports that it has been approached by two separate bidders for the company’s US assets. Speculation of this sort should never form the basis of your investment decision making. continue…

by Ben MacNevin Posted in Companies, Insightful Insights, Investing Education, Manufacturing.

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ResMed (ASX: RMD) has released its second quarter result for 2014, and once again it was a tale of two cities: the top line growth disappointed, while the bottom line growth impressed. So, amid these two opposing forces, which direction will the company likely take? continue…

by Ben MacNevin Posted in Health Care, Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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Whenever I have been asked to nominate the worst industries to invest in, I have always cited car manufacturing and airlines. Car manufacturing is an exercise in labour and capital intensive fashion design, while airlines suffer from being input price takers, are beholden (pun intended) to unionised labour, irrational competition and competitors who can secure their fuel for free. And if a commodity is anything that is purchased purely on price and where brand isn’t a consideration, then airlines are selling a commodity too. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Airlines, Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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In this interview on ABC1’s ‘The Business’, Roger discusses with Ticky Fullerton his reaction to the news that car manufacturer Holden is to cut 500 jobs in Adelaide and Melbourne. Watch here.

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Manufacturing, TV Appearances.

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In 1983, 19 per cent of the Australian workforce was in the manufacturing sector. This year, that figure stands at just 9 per cent.

This decline is a common trend across the western world.

So what’s happening to Australian manufacturing and where’s it going?
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by David Buckland Posted in Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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If you are an investor in ARB or any listed business exposed to car sales such as Super Retail Group or Automotive Holdings, you may be interested in the latest Vfacts stats below that were kindly sent to us by our friends at broker Taylor Collison.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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Pumpkin Patch is a New Zealand company that specializes in higher-end children’s wear. The company began in New Zealand in 1990 and expanded into Australia in 1993, and has managed to reach mature growth in both markets. Many Australasian retailers that reach mature growth will use their positions to support overseas expansions. Pumpkin Patch has managed to launch a profitable wholesale business by signing distribution agreements to hundreds of department stores around the world. However, its store rollout into the UK in 2001 and the US in 2005 has really hurt the company. This retail model was never profitable, and while a high New Zealand dollar and sluggish retail environment did little to help their margins, management were unable to replicate the success of the Australasian stores. The company accumulated NZD13.5 million of retained losses before management made the decision to close their UK and US stores and focus on their online and wholesale divisions.
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by Ben MacNevin Posted in Consumer discretionary, Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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Rising costs, lower productivity and a strong Australian dollar will inevitably be blamed for the collapse of another food manufacturer in Australia this week.

Gourmet Group, the company that owns the iconic Rosella Brand of tomato sauce has been placed in receivership with reports it owes as much as $50 million.

But this additional nail in the coffin of our collapsing food manufacturing industry is exactly what the government wants, it may also be what the ACCC wants and it is what Australian consumers want. And if they all complain that they don’t want it, it’s what they’re going to get.

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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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AMA, MXI, AHE and ARP share prices are all booming on the back of surging demand in an under supplied car market, causing a shortage of capacity which is driving up margins for the sector’s operators.

You can read one of our recent post on the subject here.

Naturally we have been drawn to the operators in the sector on the back of this capacity shortage. The ability to charge higher prices in a capacity-constrained environment is great if they are enduring, but I must ask, is the entire sector in a little bubble? A bubble in profitability and short-term market growth?
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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By Russell Muldoon & Roger Montgomery

We like to keep an eye on monthly new car sales statistics produced by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries. For a number of businesses we are interested in, including Carsales and ARB Corporation, they are both beneficiaries of a high level of new vehicle turnover.

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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights, Investing Education, Manufacturing.

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