What is a put option and how is Mike Ashley using it to bet on Tesco? September 25, 2014 Mike Ashley's Sports Direct has taken a punt on Tesco by entering into a put option agreement with Goldman Sachs. But what exactly is a put option and how is he using it to make money? In short, Sports Direct is selling the option to Goldman, meaning that if the share price goes up, [...]
Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct takes a punt on Tesco’s share price September 25, 2014 Mike Ashley isn't averse to taking a flutter. This time, the Newcastle United owner has taken a bet on Tesco – his company, Sports Direct, has entered into a put option agreement with Goldman Sachs on 23 million of its shares, which could leave it with a 0.28 per cent stake in the retailer, worth [...]
Online House of Fraser lift September 24, 2014 HOUSE of Fraser, the department store chain recently sold for £48m, yesterday announced adjusted earnings of £8.6m for the first half, boosted by a 29 per cent rise in online sales. Like-for-like sales rose 4.2 per cent to £542m for the six months to 26 July and the earnings figure was well up on the [...]
MySale founders Carl and Jamie Jackson are no flash in pan September 15, 2014 Carl and Jamie Jackson: The winning team behind the website that started with the 2001 British Lions rugby tour down under Retail has always been a family affair for Carl and Jamie Jackson, the co-founders of MySale – a “flash” website where shoppers can buy countless brands at a discount for short periods of time. [...]
MySale ramps up expansion with Danish Invitetobuy acquisition September 15, 2014 MySale, the Australian flash sales site, is pushing ahead with its European expansion, after snapping up a 60 per cent stake in a rival Scandinavian website. The online retailer, which counts Sir Philip Green and Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct among its shareholders, said yesterday it planned to use its acquisition of Denmark’s Invitetobuy to launch [...]
Sports Direct on a roll despite England failure September 10, 2014 SPORTS retailer Sports Direct yesterday reported rising sales and profit for the last three months, despite a soft patch during England’s poor World Cup run. The company, founded by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, said group sales rose 12.2 per cent for the 13 week period ending 27 July, to £711.2m, while gross profit increased [...]
Sports Direct scores profit rise but Mike Ashley’s company hurt by England’s poor World Cup September 10, 2014 Sports Direct enjoyed an 11.8 per cent rise in profit for the period ending 27 July 2014 , yet the sportswear retailer was hurt by England's early World Cup exit. The company founded by Newcastle United chairman Mike Ashley reported a 12.2 per cent increase in sales from £631m to £711.2m, while gross profit also [...]
Mike Ashley retains House of Fraser stake as Nanjing Xinjiekou sale goes through September 2, 2014 The sale of department store House of Fraser to Chinese conglomerate Nanjing Xinjiekou has gone through today – with Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley retaining his 11 per cent stake. The deal values the business at around £480m – probably more than it would have valued at, had chairman Don McCarthy gone through with [...]
Brixton’s Deng unfazed by replacing star LeBron August 28, 2014 FOLLOWING in the footsteps of former Miami Heat standard bearer and the most famous player on the planet LeBron James might seem a daunting prospect, but not for transatlantic basketball star Luol Deng. The 29-year-old Great Britain forward signed a two-year deal in July worth $20m with Eastern Conference side Miami, who were earlier this [...]
Twitch – what is it and why has Amazon just spent nearly $1bn on it? August 26, 2014 Back in May the word was that Google was eyeing up games social platform Twitch, but last night Amazon emerged as the triumphant bidder, nearly four times what Jeff Bezos paid for The Washington Post. Just what is Twitch and why does everyone want a piece? Essentially, it's video-game voyeurism: Twitch is currently the centre of [...]