Bidcorp delivered another trading update to analysts yesterday. It was a Management update on general trading conditions. This follows on a similar type of statement from two weeks back at the AGM. They talk about Brexit and currency volatility. In their UK operation they have managed to lock in a customer for the next five years and the pipeline looks good, the market is fragmented and they have an opportunity to consolidate further. Eastern Europe looks better than Western Europe. The South African business amongst their emerging market businesses looks decent enough. Mainland China is good, Hong Kong not so much, the tourist numbers are lower. Things in Brazil have seemed to have steadied.
What is pretty amazing is that they have managed to make 8 bolt-on acquisitions. And it is all around, Brazil, Italy, the UK, Belgium, Australia (3 businesses) and New Zealand. They even suggest that they could be in the business of looking for new geographies. All in all, a lack of food price inflation is a bit of a negative (that may change), in the UK there are early signs that it may pick up. My take from this general update to the investor community is that the company has seen volatility, all is good in the hood though. Better than people anticipate. We really think that this is a great investment theme. Food preparation and more people eating out. We maintain our buy rating on the business.