RE: Bruce Campbell Thank you rodani. You could see the share price begin to decend again after the post announcement rebound right after the announcement by JEC that they were withdrawing their efforts to thwart the acquisition. Actually, this is likely the buying opportunity of a lifetime for this stock. Juniors that graduate to intermediate and continue their production and reserves growth to larger intermediate or small senior status never see a reversion in their earlier share price again (to where it was as a low volume junior where Ithaca is now).
There is always hesitation by the institutional investors to buy at this point in the acquisition process as there is still uncertainty. Try to visualize what the share price will be at around the end of 2014 when the company is back to zero debt and $200 million of cash on hand with an upcoming year of ~25000 boepd and very close to $800 million in cash flow. You can be dead sure they will be making another acquisition in the 15,000 boepd range with at least 25 million mmboe of reserves. If and when this occurs folks Ithaca will never see the sub $2 level ever again.
So the current share price is absolutely stupidly undervalued and an amazing opportunity to acquire shares.
Once this company closes this deal they will no longer be restricted so they will be producing a cracker jack presentation to show the tremendous accretiveness of this acquisiton showing potential investors just how quick this investment will be returned and the debt paid off using the combined tax credits.
The timing could NOT be better for Ithaca to have $1 billion of tax credits as they can use them in an "absolute highest and best use scenario" to pay for the entire Valiant acquistion which catapults the company into a whole new level with mere tax savings from the application of the combined credits. Looking back a few years from now, I believe it will have been the event that was the major catalyst that changed the company forever. Investors are underestimating the magnitude of this deal on the future of the company.