Diamond & Specialty Minerals Summary for Feb. 17, 2023
2023-02-17 18:37 ET - Market Summary
by Will Purcell
David Hodge's Zimtu Capital Corp. (ZC), a purveyor of projects to many a promoter, appears to have caved just a bit to a dissident group of shareholders. Zimtu, down one cent to 11 cents on 90,000 shares today, said late last month that it was offering 14.29 million shares at seven cents, seeking $1-million for "proposed investments in new opportunities."
Several days later, Mr. Hodge, president, caught an earful from shareholder Talmage Adams about the placement plan that had been arranged just days after he and his group of concerned shareholders told Zimtu that they wanted to "engage constructively with management to discuss value-enhancing strategies." Rather than sell more shares, they grumped, Zimtu has about $2.6-million in liquid securities it could sell within a month with little market disruption.
On Wednesday, Mr. Hodge and his crew reduced the offering by a few million shares, now seeking just $850,000. They said the reduction was merely the result of a decision to "defer or reduce the size of certain of [Zimtu's] planned investments," adding that the cash raised will be used specifically for general and administrative expenditures, audit expenses, and certain investment commitments.
Meanwhile, an early warning report filed this week identifies another two members of the dissident group. The primary one is Robert Williamson, a Florida resident, who along with his joint actors acquired another 172,000 shares at an average of 8.45 cents apiece to give them 2.79 million shares, or just across the 10-per-cent threshold. The third member of the dissident group was identified as Ghensie Angrand, Mr. Williamson's wife.
Meanwhile, Zimtu was active in its role as a project generator this week -- "connecting opportunity and you" its website cheers -- as it connected Brian Testo's Grizzly Discoveries Inc. (GZD: $0.075) with 10 claims in the Greenwood mining district of British Columbia, packaged as the Beaverdell claims. The claims went cheap: Grizzly paid just $7,500 in cash and 75,000 shares for the metals prospect.
The claims were apparently a sliver of "a very large set of mineral claims" in British Columbia that Mr. Hodge says Zimtu acquired from the estate of the late David Heyman, a prolific prospector in the province. Expect more deals as Mr. Hodge says that he and his crew "look forward to additional transactions that can expand our Zimtu holdings"-- suggesting that anyone looking to be connected with some of Zimtu's other opportunities should give him a call.