I have shares in the banks

sabretoothtigger

HBOS shareholders should stick with Lloyds deal.
Merging the two banks is not a marriage made in heaven. But by ditching it and reappointing their ex-chairman, HBOS investors would risk the little they have. They should only consider Sir Peter Burt and Sir George Mathewson if the two can make a properly financed counter-bid.

http://www.breakingviews.com/2008/11/09/Mathewson-Burt.aspx?email

Context News


The former chairmen of Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS have written a public letter to the HBOS board asking for it to ditch the merger with Lloyds TSB.

Sir George Matthewson and Sir Peter Burt also want be to installed as chairman and chief executive respectively of an independent HBOS, replacing the incumbents Lord Stevenson and Andy Hornby.

In their letter, the Sir George and Sir Peter say that the terms of the Lloyds offer to HBOS shareholders, including 0.605 of a Lloyds share for every HBOS share, "greatly undervalue" HBOS.

They also say that there is "no reason why HBOS could not ask for recapitalisation as a standalone bank".

The letter says that in the absence of HBOS support for their proposal, the pair will canvass HBOS shareholders with a view to requisitioning an EGM to remove Lord Stevenson and Hornby.

elizw

Thanks S. Do you think my shares in HBOS will ever go up to a decent price ever again. I was building them up as adcumulation shares so that I could get a good income from them in the future.

DocProc

It would be wrong of me to tell you what to do - and I don't profess to know what that is. But I do know and believe the following to be true and so I'll pass an opinion on it to try and be of some help.

If you sell them now, then you will crystallise an actual loss for sure.

Now is not the time to be selling shares, it is more a time to be buying them.

If you do crystallise your loss and make it an actual one, then about the best way of turning that position round would be to get back into the stock market. If you did that, then what shares would you have in mind that might come back up just as fast as HBOS has gone down?

Once Lloyds TSB take them over and things in general start to improve - and this is going to take at least 18 months to a couple of years (or maybe even a bit more than that) then banks are one of the most profitable businesses known to man. And Lloyds TSB should be able to start paying dividends again in about that length of time so they should get to be a lot better thought of.

If you can, I'd hang on for a recovery.

gozomark

the question you need to ask yourself is (and its very similar to what DocProc is saying)

if you were looking to invest in stockmarkets now, and you didn't own any HBOS, would you buy some ?

sabretoothtigger

elizw wrote: »

Thanks S. Do you think my shares in HBOS will ever go up to a decent price ever again. I was building them up as adcumulation shares so that I could get a good income from them in the future.

They'll cease to exist soon. If you bought at ten pounds then at least half of that is a dead loss I'd say and if your optimistic I guess you might see moderate value reclaimed in the lloyds shares over the next ten years.
They have doubled the number of shares in circulation for starters, so thats half price then in Jan 09 it will be basically swapped 2 for 1 lloyds shares, so at best price they'd be a quarter of their value prior to june?

People who bought at two or three pounds per share might hope for their money back sometime before 2018, its hardly a cheery situation to at best only get your money back but could have been worse

fatpig_2

elizw wrote: »

. Shareholders would be better of under this. ?

Lloyds TSB shareholders certainly would be

sabretoothtigger

Context News


Santander, the Spanish bank, has launched a E7.2bn rights issue at a 46% discount to Friday’s closing price. The bank is issuing one new share for every four in circulation at a price of E4.5 per share. Santander said the rights issue is aimed at reinforcing the bank’s core capital and has been fully underwritten. It reiterated that it is planning no acquisitions.

The bank’s core Tier one capital ratio will be 7% post rights issue, up from 6.3% at the end of September.

Alfredo Saenz, Santander’s chief executive, told investors at the bank’s results presentation on October 28 that it did not need to raise new capital.

http://www.breakingviews.com/2008/11/10/Santander.aspx?email


Very nice I reckon, hopefully it doesnt take them 3 months like bb did

sabretoothtigger

elizw wrote: »

Can anyone let me know what they think about the new bid for two ex bankers to take over HBOS. Shareholders would be better of under this. Would shareholders vote to accept this if asked?

Discussion of why hbos cannot just carry on independently:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/

As of 30 June, HBOS had to refinance £156bn of wholesale funding over just 12 months.

Lloyds TSB is sharply lower as threats emerge to its agreed take-over of HBOS (LSE: HBOS.L - news) . The government has clarified that HBOS will be eligible for government assistance should the merger with Lloyds TSB not go through, which will be seen as a boost to the efforts of Scottish banking grandees Sir George Mathewson and Sir Peter Burt to engineer an independent future for the embattled mortgage lender.
Additionally, there are rumours that the Bank of China (3988.HK - news) is interested in acquiring HBOS, with former HBOS chief executive Jim Spowart lined up to take over at the helm.

sabretoothtigger

Brett Hammond, chief investment strategist at TIAA-CREF, says investors should forget the past and look for opportunities in the financial and health-care sectors.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gjMdi3WCufw

musclesza

elizw wrote: »

Thanks S. Do you think my shares in HBOS will ever go up to a decent price ever again. I was building them up as adcumulation shares so that I could get a good income from them in the future.

It is the only share I would be nervous about - however you will get 0.6 of a lloyds share for each hbos share held - I believe that holding the shares are crucial if you afford otherwise you will be doing what all the idiots do and that is buy high and sell low then complain the market is a terrible place.

Barclays will get close to 135 soon and is a great time to buy however what goes down will go up again eventually or as you said in one of the first posts if they go we all go!!!

Lloyds is stronger if they drop hbos they will fly if they dont in a few years they will be unstoppable

HOLD THE SHARES!!!!!