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The
Planet (OTC BB: CPNE) Conference Call: What to Listen For |
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After 6 months of straight decline
in their stock price, the geniuses at Commerce Planet have finally
decided to communicate with the investing public. What a novel idea. If
communicating with investors was like saving a drowning man, these guys
would be throwing out an anchor instead of a lifeline.
In case you missed the press release,
CPNE
will be holding a conference call on Tuesday, just after the market closes.
It's what I've been preaching for the last month. Tell investors what the
hell is going on at this company. There were some very disturbing trends
in their last financial filing, and these bozos need to address the problems
head on with shareholders. Instead, over the last several months they have
been loading the news with fluff about "new and expanded services" No numbers.
Click
here if you want instructions for dialing in.
There is no indication the conference
call will be open to questions, which I believe is a big mistake. If CPNE
is going to address the issues straight on, they need to be willing to
handle the tough questions.
At any rate, this could turn into
more hot air, or it could be an inflection point back to the positive.
Here's what I believe they need to deal with head on. First and most important-
their banking relationships, including the charge backs and the money hold
backs. Last quarter the banks raised their reserve requirements by a whopping
42%- the banks are holding on to $5 million of their cash
to deal with potential customer complaints. That's a huge increase, and
an alarming trend. If the merchant processing banks are modifying their
stance in favor of the company, we need to know now. If they aren't we
need to know that as well.
CPNE also needs to address
the issue of a rumored FTC Investigation. I have heard it several
times. They need to be very clear about it. If the FTC is looking
at them formally or informally, they need to state it clearly. If they
are not, they need to say so as well. Not addressing the issue will have
investors assuming the worst.
They should also address subscriber
retention trends. What are their retention numbers? Are they improving,
or getting worse? They should also provide investors with Q3 guidance so
we know where we stand. If they are financially secure, they should keep
buying their stock back with corporate money. How much do they believe?
I will be the first to admit- I didn't
see it coming. I thought their value proposition was a bit flimsy, but
I didn't realize it would be the merchant banks who caused the serious
disruption. It has cost me a lot of money, and others as well. The house
they built was one heck of a cash flow machine, but it may have been built
on a poor foundation.
At any rate, Tuesday represents an
opportunity to start things headed in the right direction. Lay it all out,
and let investors decide. If the company is back on track, we should have
the facts. Great opportunity or Dead Stock Trading? Listen and a judge
for yourself. If they don't address these issues head on, I believe the
market will assume the worst and the stock will be likely to head back
down. You be the judge.
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Titan Global
(OTC BB: TTGL): Putting Its Money Where Its Mouth Is |
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Have a gander at this chart. Out
of no where TTGL has become the new OTC Journal superstar,
making a new all time high in the August doldrums- a time when micros are
generally ignored.
For those who need a refresher course,
TTGL
has its foundation in two divisions. A PCB (printed circuit board) division
which has generally been a drag on the company, and a Telecom division
wherein they are the third largest seller of pre-paid phone cards on the
planet- approaching $150 million in annual revs and very significant positive
cash flow.
Against a back drop of a mere $83.3
million market value at the current price, the stock seemed very cheap
for months. Balance sheet issues from past toxic financings have been troubling,
but they are slowly working their way through those past indiscretions.
In the Spring, Titan announced
they would spin out the PCB division into a separate PubCo, and dividend
out the shares to investors. Apparently, they changed their mind and have
headed in a new direction. They are on an acquisition binge-lining up purchases
of private companies with huge top lines in order to become a rather substantial
holding company.
They have announced two major and
pending acquisitions: Appalachian Oil, which apparently delivers north
of $400 million in annual revs, and USA Detergents, a company with $56
million in annual revs.
All told, if TTGL pulls this
off, this company will be delivering annual revs to the tune of $700
million. I have no idea how leveraged they will become or how profitable
they could be- it's way too early to say.
Along with the slate of promising
developments, TTGL announced last week it had eclipsed the million
share buy back threshold. This company has now bought back over 1 million
shares of its common stock in the open market, and retired those shares
from existence. Their average purchase price was $1.35 per share.
Now, that's what I call a commitment to your stock price.
Another interesting development was
TTGL's
announcement it had formed a committee to explore pursuing a NASDAQ listing.
Ambitious, but not unheard of. Possible? Of course, but don't expect it
in the immediate future. There are several thresholds to get past- They
will probably need a quarter or two of performance under their belt with
the pending acquisitions closed to get the NASDAQ's attention. A $4 stock
price is an issue as well (the minimum NASDAQ requirement for a new listing),
but they could appreciate into a $4 stock by that time, or their committee
could consider a reverse split to achieve the $4 level. Simply rising to
$4 is more likely in my view as their simply aren't enough shares I&O
to justify a reverse split, but you never know for sure until the time
comes.
As we roll into the best time of
year to be a microcap investors, TTGL is poised to become the next
OTC
Journal superstar, replacing CPNE, which made a 6 fold move
from its level a year ago to the top in January. (Honorable mention to
PNWIF as well, which made a nearly three fold move last season).
TTGL
is clearly the one to own right now. Both the stock and the company seem
to be on a tear.
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