Ann: Interim Update, page-59

I'm feeling a tiny bit more positive this morning, having re-read the announcement.  They pulled the plug on P3, that's bad, but it would have been worse to have gone into deeper debt on it and had no chance of being profitable, which is what it sounds like.  It also sounds like some kind of new direction will be announced, they are doing due diligence - on what? 

First Samuel must be hard on their case, they put 2% of their portfolio (of their investors' portfolios) into this, they have written some glowing and supportive reports as to why they chose it.  Not only is it the potential loss of money, it's the loss of reputation which could lead to loss of clients.  If they are staying in the game by leaving the line of credit there, then it has to be for a reason.  No doubt they will closely vet any acquisitions etc. that the new board presents, and this is another good thing.  Alarms have sounded, shareholders and investors are paying attention.  

It was a very honest announcement, I thought.  They did the drilling, the results were not supportive of P3, they acted quickly to cancel P3 and secure equipment AND they are laying off staff.  All we ever seemed to hear about from past management was hiring, more shifts, more staff.  Cutting costs quickly is a sign of a management on the ball because hard as it is to lay off people, they have to balance that against shareholder's equity and preserving it.

So let's see where it goes.  I'll reserve judgement for now, but things could get interesting.