Australian (ASX) Stock Market Forum

LBL - Laserbond Limited

oh no , a Roaring Kitty moment ( wink )

careful the regulators love lunching on minnows
 
LBL 12 month low today
Dormant bid for 5,000 hit @0.65!
Never expected that fill. A few more for the tucker bag lol

Held
💎💎🖐️🖐️
 
Having a muse on LBL while waiting for the late night dose of viagra to kick in. Undecided (about LBL) for the FBMF. Might add if it returns to 0.65, not sure. I hold LT about the same dollar amounts of LBL and SND and at current prices I'm interested in both. Maybe I should wait for the FY24 earnings reports. LBL reported it's annual last year on 24/08/2023. Annoyingly LBL doesn't give a heads up when its going to release its Annual.

Held
Holding
 
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I will have to go thru LBL report in detail, but overall it is in line with my expectations for 2024. Bit of a drop in earnings and cash flow as the business adapts and adopts. May present an opportunity to add to my position as I expect the market will not like it. Wish more businesses presented 5 year tables like this,


Screenshot 2024-08-23 at 8.15.48 am.png
 
Its taking a while to digest the LBL results, so much of the explanation of the results is filled with bull**** Earnings, (EBITDA), so the commentary is really no help, its a matter of working thru the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow.

In the income we can see straight away that gross profit is pretty comparable to last FY, up about $1m, other income is similar, in terms of costs Admin is similar, D & A is similar, employment up $1m as flagged in commentary, finance costs up slightly, R&D up nearly $1m as flagged, other expences up a bit. So in total about $2m extra costs so the $1m extra gross profit delivered $1m less PBT.


Screenshot 2024-08-23 at 9.50.55 am.png



So gross margins dropped a couple of %, net margins have dropped about 30%, impact of higher tax rate is nearly $400k, so offsetting for the extra tax earnings still would have dropped to $3.9m a drop of over 20% on PRP. I think management were stretching it by focussing on the increased tax rate, its the drop in margins/increase in costs that did the damage.

The cash flow statement reinforces this,

Screenshot 2024-08-23 at 2.33.12 pm.png


cash in up $2m, OCF down $1m, FCF down about $500k.

I expect a tough 2025, they are going to have more costs as they bed down the acquisition and look to grow the US business, margins will remain lower and profits & FCF will be impacted. I would prefer they deferred dividends until the business can afford them again, but we know that wont happen!

Given my entry price I am happy to be patient and accumulate if they drop enough. I still have confidence in management's ability to execute at this stage. Just have to keep a close eye on debt, margins and FCF over the next couple of years.
 
Picked those up obviously after today's downdraft. I'm out of ideas for the chart now. My assumption has been a sideways consolidation with a lower support line at 0.65. The fact that it has broken that so substantially is a very bad look to me. I haven't looked back but I think we 'intrinsically' valued LBL considerably higher. Rather impatiently I've bid for 5,000 more @ 0.58, top of the queue, but it's with my eyes shut now.
Edit: yep, that bid @ 0.58 hit straightaway

Held

DAILY
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Actually, just went through my primitive valuing process and based on FY24 bottom line results alone the share price is about right now. Not that it won't likely overshoot any fair value number, given that's what commonly happens and the FY24 result has obviously disappointed someone(s) and LBL is illiquid.
But I get retained earnings of 0.015 after the dividend.
Meaning FY24 book value = 0.295 (FY23 = 0.28)
I get FY24 ROE of 10-11% for which I'd pay x 2 times if not applying some discount for safety.
2 x .295 = 0.59 without a dIscount for debt
Of course I'm counting on Laserbond succeeding in its growth plans, but that's just a punt really.
Also, I see around 15% ROE being a more normal return on equity historically.
 
Looking at the weekly chart has me holding off from any thoughts of buying for a while.
Charting is tenuous enough without low volume trading, but notwithstanding I'm thinking the break of the 0.65 level after the annual report was significant and the price is likely to exceed the last 'swing low' @ 0.54. Even much lower at a slow rate is conceivable to me, the more so if the general market doesn't hold up. Since, as galumay notes, 2005 could be tough for LBL, there might not be enough time for it to establish its growth projects before the share market gets hit by a big wave.

Held
Holding

WEEKLY chart neatly shows a retouch of prior support at 0.65 before falling back. The chosen moving averages have crossed and are falling. The biggest volume bars are negative.

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Positive short term chart move by luncheon.
Reported Half Year 23 Feb last year, getting close.

Held
Holding

DAILY
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Laserbond getting whacked in open trading upon a lacklustre H1 report where revenue flat but costs well up as they recruit and train for growth. Still feeling out opening some production in the U.S to be close to customers there. EPS down 42% y/y. Guiding to a more profitable H2.

Held at a loss
Possible add
 
QUote from H1 Report:
"Over the half, US expansion plans progressed with research, analysis and offshore discussions confirming the multiple advantages and optimal locations for a local facility to capture markets where LaserBond’s proprietary technology is highly sought. The company continues to be highly confident in its future. We are targeting 2H25 revenue of between $22.2 and $25.1 million, representing growth of 9.4% to 23.6% on 1H25. Profit before tax is estimated to be between $2.4 and $3.1 million, representing 80% to 134% growth on 1H25."
 
I expect a tough 2025, they are going to have more costs as they bed down the acquisition and look to grow the US business, margins will remain lower and profits & FCF will be impacted. I would prefer they deferred dividends until the business can afford them again, but we know that wont happen!

Given my entry price I am happy to be patient and accumulate if they drop enough. I still have confidence in management's ability to execute at this stage. Just have to keep a close eye on debt, margins and FCF over the next couple of years.

Probably worse than I expected in the comments above, long way back for LBL to get the business performing as it did a few years ago.

Screen Shot 2025-02-21 at 8.06.35 am.png
 
LBL roaring back today. Up 8% on 137,000 shares traded, lol
Low volatility stocks are harder to risk calling. My target yesterday for accumulation was lower - I think I settled on 30c but I am prepared to miss out.

I was reading a post elsewhere by one of the self identified brothers who founded the company and he's been butting heads with the board. He accuses them and senior management of risk aversion, over confidence in their judgement and more concerned with stability and protecting their positions than innovation and bold moves. Says this sort of business (bearing surface additives and laser cladding) is rapidly evolving and LBL is at risk of falling behind the comp. He says they let a golden opportunity pass for taking a stake in a company that would have introduced LBL to great opportunities. The target's shares are 4x now. Basically saying LBL management is timid, stick in the mud, overly cautious and putting their own job security at the forefront of considerations. Someone referred to him as 'Greg' if that rings a bell. He sounds quite reasonable and eloquent. All this is my paraphrasing and interpretation of his very long post obviously - i have no independent opinion of the board.

Held
Accumulating

DAILY
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AI Overview
Learn more

LaserBond was founded by Gregory Hooper with his brother, Wayne Hooper, joining the business later.

Here's a more detailed account:
  • Founder: Gregory Hooper, a technical specialist in welding applications and metallurgy, envisioned a service company focused on new metal spray deposition technology.

  • Initial Establishment: In 1992, Gregory Hooper founded the company as HVOF Australia P/L in a small workshop in Ingleburn, NSW, with family support.

  • Expansion: Wayne Hooper, Gregory's brother, joined the business in 1994.

  • Innovation: LaserBond's innovation with Laser Cladding started in 1999 when they began designing one of the world's first high-powered Laser Cladding systems.

  • Growth: The company has since become a well-known ASX-listed company known as LaserBond Limited (ASX: LBL).

  • Key Figures: The current CEO of LaserBond is Wayne Hooper.

  • Patents: In 2014, the LaserBond team lodged patent applications for a new "LaserBond deposition method".
 
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