Progress, just a bit slower than we would likeGRA is not great at IR, but getting an agency/IR firm to help would be a mistake. I would much prefer an IR hire that works solely for the company, and can reflect the vision S.N. has, a pump and dump shop is not what he wants, nor what we need. Hire the right person and get them up to speed over the next while, as this company will need full time IR in a year or so, start developing it in house now.
MRE is a good partner, and I hope they stay right where they are. The recent award is for the brake lines they built 2 plus yewars ago, not anything new. We do not know how much effort came from GRA and how much MRE put into it, but they have the auto contacts and ability to get it into the supply chain.
If GRA were to get too close to a much larger OEM supplier, the risk of a takeout rises. That would be great if you want to sell today at $6 , but if you want the possible big payday 3 years from now, do not hope for a larger more aggressive partner.
This company has struggled a lot with timelines, partly because of covid issues, partly setting the goals too high too fast, but the CEO has a vision, he is moving the product along, and it seems to have gone too high 6 months ago, and likely too far down now as well. This is the risk of small companies, emerging technologies, and products that have a long runway to approval.
That also means when GRA gets a product approved, and a strong customer backlog, it is a barrier to entry for competitors.
I am not happy with the current price, but I am not unhappy with the methodical progress we believe is happening. A little more clarity and IR energy would be great, but efforts on the real business are what will get us rewarded.
I have some empathy for the CEO as the financing/customer/regulatory issues we need solved for the battery program are not always in his control;. Governments are going to help with this, but at their speed, not ours.
Best of luck.