Harvey Norman might have been belted
Harvey used a similar line back in February 2018, when the stock was trading around $3.65; it would climb to $6 in March 2021, but closed down 7.5 per cent on $3.85 on Tuesday after the company disclosed like-for-like sales in January were down 10.4 per cent.First, he argues the December half result needs to be seen in the context and of an incredible few years; while reported profit was down 15.1 per cent to $365.
The treatment of Harvey Norman’s property has been a long-standing gripe for the billionaire and an issue of contention for the market; he reminds me of a column that I wrote four years ago raising questions about the way the portfolio was valued, and points out that since then, its value has increased by 56 per cent.But Harvey believes even Harvey Norman is undercooking what the portfolio is worth, for one very simple reason: scarcity.
If you’re not already calling your local real estate agent to sell your home to buy Harvey Norman shares, you might accuse Harvey of a touch of hyperbole. He says online-only retailers, who were “crowing out there a year or two ago about how they were going to take over our business” are now looking much less snug now.“If you’re an online-only retailer now your chances of survival are slim – it doesn’t matter who you are.”