Minutes:

Minutes of the meeting of the 15th April 1998, held in TC7 at 6:30pm:

Present: Martin Ayub, Meera Thavasothy, Arnold Spence, Scott Crawford, Neil Barron, Keith Longmuir, Steve Walker, Paul Garcia, Dan George, John Cole, John Ford. On the phone: Steve Mantz, Chris James, Milton Boyne.

Everyone got the minutes from, the last meeting, so we dispensed with reading them.

Paul asked if anyone who can't make it give him a call to let him know.

Shares have generally performed well since last month, except for JJB Sports. We need to set a floor price at which to sell for our holdings.

Closing prices were JJB - 530, Signet - 43.75, National Express - 883.5, SFI - 219.5, Psion - 295 & Asda - 218.75

Neil reported that the unit value is now 0.98 i.e. our money is worth 98% of our investments.

Psion is still struggling, Asda is surging ahead, JJB has dropped dramatically (more later), Signet has raced ahead as has National Express and SFI.

The JJB problem has been caused by Sports Division's decision to abandon it's floatation, the Newcastle director's comments, a report that the sport sector is over supplied, and a recommendation by Nat West to sell. We'll hold on to JJB until after the interim report which is due shortly.

Neil outlined the process of setting up a stop-loss system. A 10 % system means that if the price drops by 10% from its peak value we consider selling. He proposed setting up a 10% stop-loss system such that when a stock's price falls, a group of 3-5 members consider the merits of selling.

The selling would not be automatic, for instance a general market drop may occur, so the price may not merit selling. John Ford suggested a group of 5, 3 of which (either Paul or Neil + 2 others) will be contacted to make the decision. Neil Barron, Paul Garcia, Milton, Arnold and Steve Walker were the 5 who volunteered, and the plan is now in operation.

Neil advised members to hold on to their tax returns until he's established our tax liability. More details to follow.

John asked if we can buy shares in other (i.e. non-UK) markets. We can but dealing costs are more. There are online dealing systems which reduce this cost, which we'll look into.

Steve Walker reported on Delta, and presented the details. He also reported on Pentland plc and read some press reports. He further suggested a company called Treats Group who manufacture ice cream for major supermarkets.

Keith suggested buying more Signet shares given their recent good press and prospects.

Arnold has been following Pace (satellite systems), but it requires more research. Interestingly some of the directors have been buying shares in the company.

Neil presented some notes on how to pick growth shares. He handed out his notes, and they'll be available on the web site for those who couldn't make the meeting. He went on to report on companies Robert Walters plc, Compel, and Lynx who suppliers of support services, whatever that is, with a recommendation of Lynx. A vote was taken to buy £1000 worth of Treats plc shares.

Psion will be monitored and a stop loss set at it's 52 week low of 276p, and if sold the cash will be invested in Signet.

The future meetings will be on the SECOND WEDNESDAY of each month, so that's the 13th May for the next one.

Martin Ayub,
Secretary.