Patientline plc / Turnaround? - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

[IronMike]

Patientline plc mit Sitz in England stellt Terminals für Krankenhausbetten her, von denen der Patient aus Telefonieren, TV schauen, Internet surfen, Essen bestellen kann. Bei erweiterter Vernetzung mit dem Krankenhaus kann auch vom Patientenbett auf alle Patientenakten zugegriffen werden werden.

Da Geschäftsmodell besteht darin, diese selbstentwickelten Terminals den Krankenhäusern kostenlos zur Verfügung zu stellen und über die TV u. Telefonnutzung des Patienten zu re-finanzieren.

Die Firma kämpft momentan mit der hohen Schuldenbelastung, da hohe Investitionskosten für die Herstellung und Installation aufzubringen waren.
Zudem läuft ein Verfahren mit der englischen Telekommunikations-Regulierungsbehörde, die die überhöhten Minutenpreise der Telefonnutzung überprüft.

Der Aktienkurs der im Jahr 2001 and die Börse gegangenen Firma ist von Jan 2005 bis Okt 2005 von 110GBp auf 30GBp gefallen.

Falls es gelingt das Verfahren mit der Regulierungsbehörde beizulegen wird sich die Aktie sicherlich schlagartig erholen.
Anzeichen dafür ist vielleicht auch das gestrige Einsteigen eines institutionellen Anlegers, der ca. 5% der Aktien erworben hat.

Ist diese Aktie eine Investion wert oder sollte man noch abwarten?

www.patientline.co.uk
ISIN: GB0030221088
WKN: 659079

Gruss, IronMike




The Sunday Times October 02, 2005

Inside the City: Patientline hit by £100m sick note
RICHARD FLETCHER

SHARES in Patientline, the company that provides bedside telephony and televisions in hospital, have fallen 75% since the start of 2004, destroying more than £100m of shareholder value.
The dramatic collapse is not that surprising. Even Evolution Securities, one of the company’s own advisers, admits it has concerns about the firm breaching its banking covenants — although Patientline insists they are unfounded.

Run by Derek Lewis, former director-general of the Prison Service, Patientline has more than £80m debt and has racked up losses of nearly £30m since its 2001 float.

Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, announced in July that it was investigating the cost of calling a Patientline phone. Calls cost 49p a minute, compared with the 16p price of calling a mobile phone.

Half of all Patientline revenues are generated from incoming calls — and Evolution has warned that an adverse ruling from Ofcom could bring the “business model into question”. Patientline is confident of being cleared, but has nevertheless postponed installing new units until Ofcom completes its investigation.

As if the Ofcom probe were not enough, Patientline also had to admit to poor trading in July. A number of NHS trusts have temporarily closed wards in an attempt to “balance their books”, leaving 1,000 Patientline terminals idle.

The company may feel aggrieved that, having spent millions of pounds installing bedside televisions and telephones, Ofcom is now considering moving the goalposts by attempting to reduce the amount the firm can charge. But the cost of calls has caused real anger. In the past 12 months more than 100 formal complaints about Patientline have been lodged with NHS trusts.

Patientline is not only a lesson in the destruction of shareholder value; it is also a reminder to investors that — despite today’s fashion for private-sector involvement in the public sector — doing business with government is not always straightforward.

[IronMike]

Patientline`s condition worsens
James Quinn, Daily Mail
5 October 2005
HOSPITAL TV and phone provider Patientline has been forced to renegotiate the terms of its £110m debt facility as a direct result of a potentially damaging probe by the telecoms regulator.

The firm, which is run by former Prison Service boss Derek Lewis, is talking to Royal Bank of Scotland about amending key promises it made to lenders.

The changes are linked to a probe by the phones watchdog Ofcom, which was announced in July and has since pushed Patientline`s shares down 60%.

The inquiry was prompted after more than 30 complaints about the company`s charges that mean relatives can end up paying as much as 49p a minute to call loved ones in hospital.

While regulators delve into the case, Patientline (up 1p at 38½p) has chosen to slow down the roll-out of its telephone-and-television terminals, meaning less money is coming in.

As a result, Patientline is said to want to alter the earnings promises it made to its bankers, which will not be met due to lower than expected revenues.

A Patientline spokesman declined to comment on the changes required to its banking terms, but said: `The company`s banks are very supportive.`

But he stressed the company is not currently in danger of breaching its covenants, which are a series of important financial tests and guarantees designed to ensure a firm can continue to service its debts.

The firm, which has a market value of just £36m, has a £105m debt facility underwritten by RBS plus a further £5m working capital facility. At the end of March, its liabilities stood at £76.8m.

Patientline has also suffered from a number of problems within the NHS, including a slowdown in elective day-surgery cases.

[IronMike]

Last: 39.78
Change: +2.28
Open: n/a
High: 39.78
Low: 37.30
Volume: 85,189
Percent Change: +6.08%
52 Week Range : 28.00 to 137.00

[IronMike]

Last: 42.78
Change: +3.78
Open: n/a
High: 43.00
Low: 39.90
Volume: 511,691
Percent Change: +9.69%
52 Week Range: 28.00 to 137.00

[IronMike]

Ofcom grants Patientline six-month extension

Laura Smith
Thursday November 3, 2005
The Guardian

Patientline, which offers bedside telephone services to hospital patients, has been granted an extra six months by Ofcom to correct a breach in rules.
The telecoms watchdog found this year that Patientline had breached regulations on the 070, or "follow me anywhere", numbers it uses and ordered it to make changes by December. In some hospitals, callers are directed through a switchboard rather than being connected directly to patients, which is against regulations and can increase call costs.

[IronMike]

Langsam rappelt sie sich wieder hoch.
Denke, dass wir dieses jahr die 55 pence wieder sehen werden. Das sind also noch 30% zu holen.