Forum Archive Index - October 2000

["P Maiden" <pmaiden@xtra.co.nz>]

For one who seems so quiet and reasonable this has upset you - hasn't it Warner.

 

I agree to a certain extent. WRI is one of those companies who have contributed to the erosionof  billions of dollars worth of shareholder wealth over recent years. Besides poor trading performance I have lost track to the number of costly restructures etc that WRI have gone through - and not one was cheap.

 

Surely large rewards should only be given when above average returns are consistently achieved. Then again do we know when they will be issued to management.

 

The comments made at the AGM don't inspire you with confidence. From the press report negative statements outnumbered the positives -

 

....are "pleasing".

......was "not happy" with the state of its e-commerce online

"The positive season, though somewhat patchy.....

..... to generate a satisfactory return on capital."

......marginally ahead of plan, Mr Palmer said after the meeting. He declined to give a profit target.

Spending on work with biotech firm Genesis to improve ryegrass would pare back reported earnings in the present financial year.

......not happy with Wrightson Online and

"E-commerce is an area of great hope and an ocean potentially full of reefs and opportunities for shipwrecks."

.....he could not say how much more the company may spend on the project in the future.

....it expected it would face no liability on claims of up to $6 million ......

And not one mention of a drought or flood.

 

No doubt the shares will go to $1 over the next few months - worth a punt I suppose.

 

And then we will most likely be writing like this in a few years time when they drift down to 50 cents because of adverse weather, poor Australian performance and a $ that recovered faster than expected (and possibly expensive e-commerce projects that did not bring expected results ..)

 

Peter

 

Disc:  no WRI yet - will jump,on bandwagon for a few months and sell a 95 (lust in case they don't get to 100)