Latest news with #EamonnRothwell
Irish Times
08-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Irish Ferries owner sees slight revenue growth despite Holyhead Port closure
Irish Ferries brand owner Irish Continental Group (ICG) said revenue grew 7.1 per cent for the first four months of the year, driven by growth in their container freight division amid 'uncertainty' caused by the introduction of tariffs. ICG said consolidated group revenue rose to €189.5 million in the period, having stood at €177 million in the same period of 2024 but warned that economic uncertainty 'may damped world growth prospects'. The company sees the 'uncertainties created in the macro environment by tariffs as opportunities,' Eamonn Rothwell, the chief executive of the group, said. 'We bought two ships in the last few weeks at really good deals because there was nervousness about the macro,' he said referring to the company's purchase of the James Joyce cruise ferry and an additional container ship. READ MORE The group said the rise in its net debt to €247.9 million since the end of 2024 when it stood at €162.2 million, was 'due primarily to the vessel acquisitions [ ...] and share buy-backs during the period'. The group said there had been a decrease in revenue at its ferries division, from €119.7 million during the first four months of 2024, to €118.8 million due to the 'detrimental impact' of the closure of Holyhead Port. Ferry services at the port were suspended following damage caused by Storm Darragh at the start of December, one of piers reopened to ferry traffic in January. 'The beginning of 2025 was impacted by the closure of Holyhead Port,' the company said in a trading update issued to shareholders at its AGM. 'This has had a detrimental impact on volumes in the Ferries Division,' the company said and noted that the partial reopening of the port has led to a 'more normalised market' and welcomed the planned full-reopening of the port on 1st of July. The maritime transport group's container freight division saw a 28.6 per cent growth in volume year to date and an increase of 17.6 per cent in revenue for the division. 'Some of that growth,' chief executive said, 'is undoubtedly due to people moving goods before tariffs kicked in, so some of it might be inflated and could unwind a little bit as tariffs come in, but I still think fundamentally there has been underlying growth in the container business.'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Institutional investors own a significant stake of 33% in Irish Continental Group plc (LON:ICGC)
Significantly high institutional ownership implies Irish Continental Group's stock price is sensitive to their trading actions The top 5 shareholders own 51% of the company Insiders have bought recently Trump has pledged to "unleash" American oil and gas and these 15 US stocks have developments that are poised to benefit. Every investor in Irish Continental Group plc (LON:ICGC) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. With 33% stake, institutions possess the maximum shares in the company. In other words, the group stands to gain the most (or lose the most) from their investment into the company. Because institutional owners have a huge pool of resources and liquidity, their investing decisions tend to carry a great deal of weight, especially with individual investors. Hence, having a considerable amount of institutional money invested in a company is often regarded as a desirable trait. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Irish Continental Group. See our latest analysis for Irish Continental Group Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices. Irish Continental Group already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see Irish Continental Group's historic earnings and revenue below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. It looks like hedge funds own 5.7% of Irish Continental Group shares. That catches my attention because hedge funds sometimes try to influence management, or bring about changes that will create near term value for shareholders. With a 31% stake, CEO Eamonn Rothwell is the largest shareholder. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 5.7% and 5.1%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. To make our study more interesting, we found that the top 5 shareholders control more than half of the company which implies that this group has considerable sway over the company's decision-making. While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. While there is some analyst coverage, the company is probably not widely covered. So it could gain more attention, down the track. The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Irish Continental Group plc. It has a market capitalization of just UK£753m, and insiders have UK£237m worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders. The general public-- including retail investors -- own 30% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders. While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for Irish Continental Group you should be aware of. Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
Irish Times
25-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
ICG investors urged to reject CEO bonus and virtual AGMs plan
Investors in Irish Continental Group (ICG), owner of Irish Ferries, have been urged by a leading advisory firm to reject chief executive Eamonn Rothwell's bonus structure and a company plan to allow it hold virtual annual general meetings (AGMs) of shareholders in future. The recommendation by Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) that investors vote against ICG's remuneration plan is in line with its stance on number of previous occasions and centres on the same argument: a lack of clarity from the company over the targets on which the CEO's bonus is based. Mr Rothwell (68), who has led Irish Continental for the past 32 years, was paid a bonus by way of €1.47 million worth of restricted shares, last year, according to ICG's annual report. That equated to 99.7 per cent of his maximum opportunity under the company's remuneration arrangements. His total package came to €4.47 million, up from €3.15 million for 2023. READ MORE Commenting on the bonus in the annual report, ICG said: 'When financial performance is strong and shareholder experience is healthy, payouts will accrue. When the converse is the case, performance-related pay will be correspondingly reduced to a minor or nil amount, which runs in contrast to more complex schemes commonplace at listed companies.' However, ISS said that shareholders are, nonetheless, limited in their ability to assess bonus outcome, based on the disclosure given. 'This concern is exacerbated by the fact that the CEO has received near maximum bonuses in the past two years,' it said. ISS has also called on investors to vote against an ICG board plan to amend its articles of association to potentially allow for virtual-only shareholder meetings to be held in future. ICG said that it does not currently intend to hold any virtual-only meetings but wanted to 'retain the flexibility to do so in appropriate or exceptional circumstances'. Irish company law was amended last year to pave the way for businesses and societies to hold virtual or hybrid AGMs. 'While there is recognition of the potential benefits of enabling participation at shareholder meetings via electronic means, investors raised concerns about moves to completely eliminate physical shareholder meetings as normal practice, arguing that virtual meetings may hinder meaningful exchanges between management and shareholders and enable management to avoid uncomfortable questions,' ISS said. 'The concern remains that the virtual format may be used to stifle challenge from shareholders in a live setting.' While many companies in North America have gone down the road of virtual-only meetings in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is more unusual on this side of the Atlantic. In the UK, only 3 per cent of FTSE 350 companies that have issued their AGM notices so far this year have opted for virtual AGMs only. These include Bakkavor, the convenience foods group currently under a takeover offer from Dublin-based Greencore, and shipping services company Clarkson.
