Since I started the thread I should keep it informed. This is from a pay newsletter from the Stockhouse site.
Current Price: $0.61
Originally Featured in the May 1999 FutureStock Review keystocks.com
52 range: $0.31-$1.27
"With three straight years of consistent revenue growth and its shares currently trading at just over ten times earnings, Hars appears to be a solid opportunity for future growth"
--Mr. Ryan Irvine in his final analysis from the fully independent F.S. Review
Recent News:
July 15, 1999, HARS ACQUIRES INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FROM INTERMEZZO
HARS Systems Inc. [V.HSS], announced the purchase of the intellectual property assets of Intermezzo Systems Inc,, a software development company that created a central reservation system, Resbook, for the hospitality industry. Also acquired were the rights to an e-mail reservation delivery system, ResPop, and a hotel property management system (PMS) connection for the two way interface between most industry PMS and HARS own central reservation system. Finally, the rights to a web-based PMS (in development), designed to rival traditional systems dependant on costly hardware and resident software, were also acquired. By bringing its reservation delivery system in-house, HARS will eliminate significant transaction expenses and indeed have the opportunity to capitalize on the valuable assets it has acquired. Central reservation systems such as ResBook can command between $200,000 and $2,000,000 in one-time license fees and over $100,000 in annual maintenance.
July 05, 1999, HARS ANNOUNCES IMMANENT LAUNCH OF TRAVEL WEB SITE
HARS Systems Inc., announced the signing of an agreement with Open World Ltd. of Bath, England; for the development of a proprietary Internet site that will place all of VIP's hotel and car rental clientele on-line and book able under a "to be announced domain name" owned and controlled by HARS. The site, scheduled to be launched during September 1999, will allow for the on-line interactive booking of the company's over 3,000 hotel and car rental locations worldwide. Users will have access to real time rate, inventory, property description and amenities information and receive immediate confirmation of their booking requests. HARS plans to integrate its car rental properties into the site by the end of 1999.
Fiscal 1998 Key Financial information
1998 1997
Total Revenues $10,540,295 $8,176,555
Net Earnings $856,257 $703,242
We have posted the original May 1999, FutureStock Review feature company report below to give readers an in depth view of HARS's operations and future potential.
Hars Systems Inc. The FutureStock Review
HSS:VSE keystocks.com
Over the past 20 years, Hars Systems Inc. through its wholly owned subsidiary, VIP International Corp., has provided world class reservations and marketing services to the hospitality industry. VIP has carved out a lucrative niche by focusing on independent, relatively small chains and hotel groups for whom the creation of a Central Reservations (CRS) and access to major Global Distribution Systems (GDS), such as Sabre and Galileo, can be cost prohibitive. The company provides its clientele unsurpassed worldwide connections and access to every major GDS and, as a result, to over 600,000 travel agents. VIP also reaches millions of Internet users, on-line services providers, and, of course, the direct booking public. Today, the company boasts a client list of individual hotel properties and car rental corporations in excess of 2,900 across 65 countries.
At the heart of VIP's service is its ability to seamlessly connect its clientele to travel agents world wide via several GDS's and interactive Internet booking sites. GDS's are essentially computerized reservation networks through which users, including travel agents, airline employees, or travelers, view data and book reservations for a wide range of travel services, including air, hotel, car rentals, and other services. VIP's CRS essentially acts as a "booking engine" for its hotel and car rental clients, processing all reservation requests received via travel agents GDS's and the Internet. The company's CRS houses current rates and availability as well as a number of other highly useful statistics on each of its hotel and car rental clients.
As we touched on above, VIP's core services are tailored specifically to serve the needs of independent, small hotel and car rental chains. By continually offering new products such as "The Source" to its expanding niche market, VIP allows its car and hotel customers the opportunity to benefit from the full connectivity of the worlds largest GDS's without the development expense. Indeed, the company's Private Label Service also allows its car and hotel clients the ability to create a unique identity within the GDS's and other distribution channels.
On March 4, 1999, Hars announced that its revenues for the year ended September 30, 1998, had increased 23% to $10,076,430 from $8,176,555 in the corresponding period of 1997. Net earnings rose 21% to $851,552 or $0.06 per share versus $703,242 or $0.05 per share over the same period of the prior year.
Key Areas of Growth:
1. NetLink:
A software program that utilizes the Internet to enable VIP's client hotels to update rates and availability in VIP's CRS on a real time basis. With over 120 users activated, NetLink has the potential to add significant revenues.
2. WebLink:
WebLink provides VIP client hotels with the ability to receive interactive bookings through the Internet by linking the clients Web Sites to VIP's booking engine. Although this product has only been operational for just over a year now, on May 4, 1999, VIP announced that it had linked its 250th client Web Site to its booking engine. VIP is currently linking approximately 5 sites per week and as of May, 1999, bookings through its WebLink product now equal the number of reservations produced by all other Internet channels on a monthly basis.
3. VIP's Own Booking Site:
Presently, VIP is in the process of developing its own site for hotel and car rental bookings which is expected to be launched by the end of September, 1999. In effect, this site could give the company similar capabilities as travel giants Expedia (www.expedia.com) and Travelocity (www.travelocity.com). Indeed, if the site is positioned effectively, it could prove to be a significant producer of future revenue.
4. Distribution Channel Shift:
Perhaps what impresses us most about Hars is its adaptability. In recent years, with the development of the Internet, management has faced several challenges and a number of new opportunities. It appears the travel industry is experiencing a shift away from its traditional distribution channels onto the World Wide Web. To this end, Hars is committed to re-investing in the personnel, marketing initiatives, and technology necessary for VIP to take advantage of this shift and the new opportunities it could bring. With the addition of WebLink and NetLink to its growing line of products and services and the promise of a bookable travel site of its own, Hars future looks bright
In the Final Analysis: Over the years, VIP has never sought to be the travel industry's largest producer of reservations nor has it been driven to acquire the greatest number of clients. The company takes great pride in simply producing the most business per client. As a result, VIP has captured itself a profitable niche market, which although now somewhat saturated in North America (home of the "Mega Hotel Chains"), has great potential for continued international expansion into areas such as Europe, Asia, and South America. In fact, the hotel industry throughout much of Europe is marked by individual and small chain hotels, VIP's target market. Hars adaptability continues to position the company well to take advantage of the current industry channel shift and the burgeoning market for Internet travel. With three straight years of consistent revenue growth and its shares currently trading at just over ten times earnings, Hars appears to be a solid opportunity for further growth.
SYMBOL: HSS EXCHANGE: VSE
(original charts and graphs omitted)
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Best Regards
KEITH |
