AOI TOWN HALL NOBODY INVESTOR FEEDBACK Logging into the town hall meeting my first impression is that I see four executives physically out of shape, two grossly.
Should it matter to investor’s if an executive is in good physical shape or not?
Yes, yes it does matter because any executive that is physically out of shape is 100% guaranteed to be also mentally out of shape.
Where my bread was buttered for a lifetime and will be being buttered for the rest of my life any physically out of shape executive is sent for re-programming in sunny Florida.
Easy for my old eyes to see that more than a few double slices of cheesecake for lunch and full-bodied cabernets for dinner have gone down the gullets of these fellows on shareholders backs.
Also not too hard to tell which two have been at AOI the longest.
I also noted just how unenthused and unengaged the live crowd was throughout the presentation.
Doc, let us know if you ever find out what the person in the audience said at a bathroom break about the one thing they did not like about AOI, but clammed up when he saw you approach.
Something tells me there was a certain amount of animosity in the room.
Truth or not, that was my perception.
The takeaway for me was my ears perked up when the question was asked about why they maintain the lending facility.
The answer that came smelled a bit like pure horseshit and reinforced what I had long been thinking.
Truth or not, my perception was clearly a case of the lending banks saying we will give you X money ------------- but you will pay it back ever very slowly so that we get our taste also.
We will scratch your back as much as you like, but in return you will scratch our back as much and for long as we say.
Sound good?
Truth or not, perception is everything.
I noted Mr. Quinn mentioning 2029 ish as a timeline to first oil. Great if you just bought in, but for us who have been waiting for over a decade, the jig is up and it’s time to start paying back shareholders all the way around.
What was refreshing to hear is that they have no intention of chasing more assets, but rather focus on what they do have.
I noticed how one slide said buybacks, and ‘special dividends’ as monetisation events occurred -------- but oddly enough good ole' Pascal slyly did not specifically mention the part about the ‘special dividend’.
Seemed to me like a pretty important part of the presentation to actually not mention.
Put this on a slide about a potential special dividend in the future – and not mention it at all stinks to high heaven.
Why have something like this in there and slyly just skip on to the next slide?
While it’s true not everyone can command a room, my hat is off to the nice lady bundled up wearing the red hat, pink feathered scarf, mylar winter coat, and pink nylons.
Miss your colorful ensemble had more command of the room than any of the member of AOI presentation team.
My message today to the Dream Cheesecake Team is to double the dividend and pay it quarterly.
GLTA.