Gamble of the week: A beaten-up set-top box stock

This television set-top box company has had more than its fair share of problems, says Phil Oakley. Now could be a good time to buy in.

Life hasn't always been easy for this company, which is best known for makingtelevision set-top boxes for companiessuch as BSkyB. For much of the lastdecade, it has been struggling withone problem or another.

In the midto late 2000s the company could bestbe described as a mess. It was losingmoney and cash was pouring out of thedoor at an alarming rate. Then, in 2011, itissued three profit warnings which sawits share price come crashing down.

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Phil spent 13 years as an investment analyst for both stockbroking and fund management companies.

 

After graduating with a MSc in International Banking, Economics & Finance from Liverpool Business School in 1996, Phil went to work for BWD Rensburg, a Liverpool based investment manager. In 2001, he joined ABN AMRO as a transport analyst. After a brief spell as a food retail analyst, he spent five years with ABN's very successful UK Smaller Companies team where he covered engineering, transport and support services stocks.

 

In 2007, Phil joined Halbis Capital Management as a European equities analyst. He began writing for MoneyWeek in 2010.