RT- a poisonous mixture of stupidity, arrogance, venality and bull sh!t. Tom W has been vindicated.
There are only sellers- there are no buyers. Given this the price will only go one way- down and sharpish. With Fidelity a declared substantial seller we should expect the price to continue tanking. The price will only turn around on good news- like RT having (at long last) done the decent thing, a new Chairman, new advisors. In the short term this wil be crap- in the longer term the price will nly reflect the true value of the company (if there is any) when a modicum of confidence is restored.
No one (other than a short term trader) will buy while RT remains. I have stupidly held all the way down- in the belief that although RT was not everyone's idea f a saint, there was a decent business somewhere. Clear now that RT is either very stupid or very venal (or both), but there may still be a business under all this manure. If RT goes expect major accounting changes, asset write downs, but just possibly the start of a recovery.
I do wish that RT and his cohorts would realise that trying to be oh so clever has just made them look oh so stupid (at best) or oh so mendacious (at worst). Like most on the board I am nursing hellish losses- still have some belief in the company (if no belief in the BoD). RT should go, the new Fidelity appointed NED should be made Chairman with a clear brief to work in shareholders' interests (not the BoD's). The Mail piece is concerning,.
I don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with the business, other than a management team that is addicted to spinning a Panglosian view of the world. Terry cannot admit that not everything is perfect, so he pretends everything is brilliant- when it clearly isn't. Most of his obfuscations and misleading statements are juvenile (hitting top of market estimates, when downgrading the estimates at the same time, silly accounting practices when the business was in its infancy) but they create an impression of a business which- to the institutional investor- is just not investible. The price is on its knees not just because of shorters, but because institutions do not trust the management. If Terry would grow up, stop bleating, communicate properly, tell the truth, and explain the numbers straightforwardly rather than spinning everything, the price would be a lot, lot higher.
Met with one of the institutional holders this morning (not Fidelity), in their own words they are "spitting tacks". "Why does RT continue to (m)uck things up? What should have been a positive statement was damaged by him downgrading the revenue forecast, and then pretending they were now going to be at the top of the range? No credible reason given for the downgrade- just the normal spin and bluster. And what really pisses him (and me) off is there was enough positive news to have given a straightforward, honest update- revenue down a bit, but fundamentals good, to have seen a positive reaction. As it is Terry continues to act the clown and undermines his own rapidly-diminishing credibility. QPP has the makings of being a tremendously successful business- despite Terry and his questionable accounting and acquisitions- but the Board needs to get a grip.
This is excellent news: I doubt we will ever see any damages from Gotham (they will file for Chapter 11) but because it gives credence to the Board in saying the Gotham piece was malevolent clap trap. This could be the spark that lights the blue touch paper that encourages significant instituional buying. Hard for the shorters to do much today- their standard bearer has been cut to the ground and they will be in disarray. I wonder if the Board feel ike having a go at TW? Harder for him to avoid the English Court.
Buzz. I am a holder. And an unhappy one. Like you I get tired of the adoration poured on the Board- a Board that has seen the share price crater thanks in no small part to their over promising, under-delivering, failing to achieve a listing. So while I think the price is materially below where it will be, I have no doubt that there will be more pratfalls to come. I for one welcome the degree of scepticism you bring.