Latest news with #SimonWalker
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
'Our job is to protect a fort - to be fair it hasn't been attacked lately'
Final preparations are underway for a celebration that will take a County Down village back in time. Royal Hillsborough will play host on Saturday to the warrant ceremony of 13 new members, bringing the United Kingdom's oldest and smallest private army back up to its full complement. The Hillsborough Fort Guard was formed by Colonel Arthur Hill, he built the fort in 1660. But its members have only a ceremonial role. "Our job is to protect the fort and to be fair, it hasn't been attacked recently," Simon Walker, a corporal in the guard, told BBC News NI. The guard has a centuries-long history, although it has not always been well populated. During the Plantation of Ulster, King Charles II granted a Royal Charter to have 20 soldiers to protect Hillsborough Fort. Since that time, Mr Walker says, sometimes only one man has kept the guard going. "But the tradition has never ended," he says. The Investiture of Warrants ceremony is a rare historical moment as Hillsborough Fort Guard welcomes its first full complement of 20 warders since the late Victorian period. Dressed in their new bespoke uniforms, the warders will parade up Park Street, onto Dromore Road and down Main Street to Hillsborough Parish Church to music by the band of the Royal Irish Regiment. "The last time that it had 20 men, my great grandfather was one of the warders," Mr Walker said. The Guard takes pride in the village and strives to improve community spirit and increase tourism. Warder Trevor Hill said: "We are very much centrally based within the community, we do various walking tours and presentations, and we also run bingo nights, which is great for getting the community together." "I think will be brilliant for the village, the whole district, and just a wonderful experience, a once in a lifetime opportunity," he said. Arthur Nicholas Hill, 9th Marquess of Downshire leads the Guard, he said this will be the first time in living memory that they will be at full strength. "There is nearly 400 years of history in this Guard," he said. Mr Hill selects who becomes a warder, and they must be from County Down. "The large majority of them have all done some public service, not necessarily be in the army as some have been in the fire service or the police or the prison service." The future is bright for the regiment as the quota will be filled. "We haven't yet got our first lady member, but we have one in our sights. So that could be exciting as well that would be a new part of history."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
'Our job is to protect a fort - to be fair it hasn't been attacked lately'
Final preparations are underway for a celebration that will take a County Down village back in time. Royal Hillsborough will play host on Saturday to the warrant ceremony of 13 new members, bringing the United Kingdom's oldest and smallest private army back up to its full complement. The Hillsborough Fort Guard was formed by Colonel Arthur Hill, he built the fort in 1660. But its members have only a ceremonial role. "Our job is to protect the fort and to be fair, it hasn't been attacked recently," Simon Walker, a corporal in the guard, told BBC News NI. The guard has a centuries-long history, although it has not always been well populated. During the Plantation of Ulster, King Charles II granted a Royal Charter to have 20 soldiers to protect Hillsborough Fort. Since that time, Mr Walker says, sometimes only one man has kept the guard going. "But the tradition has never ended," he says. The Investiture of Warrants ceremony is a rare historical moment as Hillsborough Fort Guard welcomes its first full complement of 20 warders since the late Victorian period. Dressed in their new bespoke uniforms, the warders will parade up Park Street, onto Dromore Road and down Main Street to Hillsborough Parish Church to music by the band of the Royal Irish Regiment. "The last time that it had 20 men, my great grandfather was one of the warders," Mr Walker said. The Guard takes pride in the village and strives to improve community spirit and increase tourism. Warder Trevor Hill said: "We are very much centrally based within the community, we do various walking tours and presentations, and we also run bingo nights, which is great for getting the community together." "I think will be brilliant for the village, the whole district, and just a wonderful experience, a once in a lifetime opportunity," he said. Arthur Nicholas Hill, 9th Marquess of Downshire leads the Guard, he said this will be the first time in living memory that they will be at full strength. "There is nearly 400 years of history in this Guard," he said. Mr Hill selects who becomes a warder, and they must be from County Down. "The large majority of them have all done some public service, not necessarily be in the army as some have been in the fire service or the police or the prison service." The future is bright for the regiment as the quota will be filled. "We haven't yet got our first lady member, but we have one in our sights. So that could be exciting as well that would be a new part of history."
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
'Our job is to protect a fort - to be fair it hasn't been attacked lately'
Final preparations are underway for a celebration that will take a County Down village back in Hillsborough will play host on Saturday to the warrant ceremony of 13 new members, bringing the United Kingdom's oldest and smallest private army back up to its full Hillsborough Fort Guard was formed by Colonel Arthur Hill, he built the fort in its members have only a ceremonial role."Our job is to protect the fort and to be fair, it hasn't been attacked recently," Simon Walker, a corporal in the guard, told BBC News NI. The guard has a centuries-long history, although it has not always been well the Plantation of Ulster, King Charles II granted a Royal Charter to have 20 soldiers to protect Hillsborough that time, Mr Walker says, sometimes only one man has kept the guard going."But the tradition has never ended," he Investiture of Warrants ceremony is a rare historical moment as Hillsborough Fort Guard welcomes its first full complement of 20 warders since the late Victorian in their new bespoke uniforms, the warders will parade up Park Street, onto Dromore Road and down Main Street to Hillsborough Parish Church to music by the band of the Royal Irish Regiment."The last time that it had 20 men, my great grandfather was one of the warders," Mr Walker said. The Guard takes pride in the village and strives to improve community spirit and increase Trevor Hill said: "We are very much centrally based within the community, we do various walking tours and presentations, and we also run bingo nights, which is great for getting the community together.""I think will be brilliant for the village, the whole district, and just a wonderful experience, a once in a lifetime opportunity," he Nicholas Hill, 9th Marquess of Downshire leads the Guard, he said this will be the first time in living memory that they will be at full strength."There is nearly 400 years of history in this Guard," he Hill selects who becomes a warder, and they must be from County Down."The large majority of them have all done some public service, not necessarily be in the army as some have been in the fire service or the police or the prison service."The future is bright for the regiment as the quota will be filled."We haven't yet got our first lady member, but we have one in our sights. So that could be exciting as well that would be a new part of history."
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's Why We Think H&T Group (LON:HAT) Is Well Worth Watching
Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up. So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like H&T Group (LON:HAT). While profit isn't the sole metric that should be considered when investing, it's worth recognising businesses that can consistently produce it. View our latest analysis for H&T Group Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. That means EPS growth is considered a real positive by most successful long-term investors. Shareholders will be happy to know that H&T Group's EPS has grown 17% each year, compound, over three years. If growth like this continues on into the future, then shareholders will have plenty to smile about. Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. EBIT margins for H&T Group remained fairly unchanged over the last year, however the company should be pleased to report its revenue growth for the period of 15% to UK£235m. That's a real positive. The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. Click on the chart to see the exact numbers. In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out this free interactive visualization of H&T Group's forecast profits? Investors are always searching for a vote of confidence in the companies they hold and insider buying is one of the key indicators for optimism on the market. That's because insider buying often indicates that those closest to the company have confidence that the share price will perform well. However, insiders are sometimes wrong, and we don't know the exact thinking behind their acquisitions. Not only did H&T Group insiders refrain from selling stock during the year, but they also spent UK£69k buying it. That paints the company in a nice light, as it signals that its leaders are feeling confident in where the company is heading. Zooming in, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Independent Non-Executive Chairman Simon Walker for UK£39k worth of shares, at about UK£3.87 per share. If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into H&T Group's strong EPS growth. Not only is that growth rate rather juicy, but the insider buying adds fuel to the fire. So on this analysis, H&T Group is probably worth spending some time on. Even so, be aware that H&T Group is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about... There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. So if you like the sound of H&T Group, you'll probably love this curated collection of companies in GB that have an attractive valuation alongside insider buying in the last three months. Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction. 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. Sign in to access your portfolio
