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Just a few points from my perspective :-
1 Although I hear the words about 'planned succession' it is pretty obvious to me that AS has hardly gone with a fond farewell from his side. And we do not know if/if not there may be any currently unknown issues yet to be raised from either side regarding events since the purchase of Launch in October 2022 and AS's departure.
2 Christina only officially takes over today - 1 May - as per the RNS with AS stepping down yesterday. She may not be able to currently address past issues for all kinds of reasons - including legal advice not to do so. It is therefore unfair in my view to make any kind of judgment until we hear from her again - especially about the future strategy with timelines for the Therapeutics side.
3 Christina is a smart cookie and if anyone here thinks that she doesn't understand the issues then 'watch this space'. She said 'everything is on the table' not once but twice in the presentation - and she will consider all things presented to her. As CEO she does not have to be an expert in all operational areas - only to have the nous and open mindedness to listen to advice - something I reckon AS clearly did not seek or take.
4 I very much doubt that she would have taken up the post if - as some here mischievously imply - she didn't know the potential having worked on the inside for the past two years. In addition, she has spoken to many people in the oncology sector and not just at AACR and is now in pole position as our CEO to move things forward.
5 I was very critical in the past about AS as CEO and was proved right about his disastrous Dx purchases - especially as I knew from my observations of EKF Diagnostics that AS was buying Coris and Launch in a falling market. Just check out the downward spiral of EKF's SP since end of 2021. So I personally cannot fathom why AS made those purchases at this particular time and with a Convertible Bond or 'Lead Weight' to the SP. As I said in previous posts - 'They saw him coming' in London parlance and he was well and truly shafted in my opinion - but at our expense! And the overall Dx business is still loss making - surprise surprise -and projections of EBITDA positive in the second half is just 'bovine manure' as it is still a loss and what 2025 will bring is anyone's guess. So now that we all know the damage that AS has done - and I agree that the CFO's position is 100% untenable as well - which is why he had a very short slot yesterday and then was not referred to again like a very bad smell.
6 So now that the 'monkey' so to speak has finally been removed and replaced with a 'kosher' (also London parlance - nothing to do with religion) 'organ grinder' let's do the right thing and as John Lennon might have put it - 'Give Christina a Chance'. As I say - today is just Day #1.
Good post Nanomat...however, I don't think the two acquisitions and Bond can be put solely at the feet of AS...he would have had to run it by the Board and they obviously sanctioned it. It is what it is and we are where we are and we should all now move on.
Where the Coris and Launch Diagnostics acquisitions were concerned, weren't they most likely just down to AS's previous stated aims of several years ago when developing the LFT: for Avacta to become a household name on the wider testing front (beyond Covid). I just think his ego (yet again) got ahead of him and he didn't realise his limited capabilities on the finance front.
Quality assessment Nano. Think you hit the nail on the head in your final sentence of point 3. Pretty sure Alan felt he knew best and enjoyed his lifestyle generating position. His stubbornness has held the company back. Perhaps there have been clashes and that's why CC was confirming that everything was now on the table. Good luck to her, here's hoping she has a good strategic head on her shoulders.
Klaus Hochleitner - we need to start all over again and bring him back into the Avacta fold.
@PJT12......spot on...I accept the need not to dwell on the past but the whole acquisition stuff was ego driven and part of AS's personal dream rather than what was best for Avacta PLC.
I think all the critisism of AS is easy with hindsight. This was 17p pre covid. Building out a diagnostics division made perfect sense, if there was another pandemic it would be worth much more than the therapeutics. £50m spent on a business that will be cash generative in 6 months and £21m revenue is pretty savvy. The problem is the therapeutics is draining all the cash. The financial markets are now broken resulting in a undervalued share prices and a lack of any financing on reasonable terms. A few years ago we could have done the raise at a 10% discount, You cant really blame AS for this? The CFO completely dropped the ball on the financing and AS should have realised that he had to do some sort of deal to bring in some cash rather than go for the big prize in the changing environment. Ultimately when this is sold for £1bn because we kept hold f the IPS no one will be saying this is all thanks to AS not selling us out early but the truth is that is exactly why we will be worth so much.
I’ve been critical for years, thank you. No issues with the M&A, it’s the original Dx that’s drained the cash - Alan’s pet project. It’s no shock that Tx needs cash on an ongoing basis, if we could have raised at a 10% discount, why didn’t we? I blame Alan, he had PI cash on the table and chose to grease city boys to get what he views as a prestige name on the register. Unless Bella’s theories are right, it’s looking like he was led by his ego. He was delighted by courting Sequoia Carpets, it meant nowt to the business. If they were strategic partners and willing to provide on going cheap finance, kudos to him. They weren’t, we’re just a punt for them. If it’s sold for £1bn, it’s a massive failure.
Completely disagree with you Bridgedogg1.
"Building out a diagnostics division made perfect sense"? For a company that had no Dx experience and, as it turned out, no skill? Pull the other one. Dx has STILL not produced anything. "If", if, if. Name me one successful Dx business worth more than a successful Tx business.
Dx is NOT projected by Avacta to be "be cash generative in 6 months". To say so is a blatant falsehood.
"The problem is the therapeutics is draining all the cash." Firstly, Dx is draining the cash for no perceivable future benefit. Secondly, it's a given that that's what Tx does until profitable.
I used to think you were sensible. Now I think you're an idiot.
BV..if you look at the bios for Avactas Board members it might explain why the decision was made to expand the DX div by a M&A policy. Non-Execs are there for their input/expertise past and present. I don't think it has been a bad move providing they get DX fully integrated/streamlined with a clear pathway for the affimer tech from Avactas lab into Avactas testing equip and out through Avactas Distributor/Direct Sales. Avacta now owns and controls the psthway from start to finish snd shojld get cracking.
Nanomat --------
"and as John Lennon might have put it - 'Give Christina a Chance'. "
I doubt Lennon would have put it like that as it doesn't scan. He may however have put it as--
"all we are saying, is give Chris a chance" which does scan.
Thought all your other comments were bang on.
Harrogate4
You are absolutely right on scanning but I didn't want to be presumptuous and refer to Christina as 'Chris'.
I presume you have a musical background of some kind. In another life I played keyboards and guitar as well as compose though as a schoolboy I played violin - mother pressure - in the school orchestra and still consider the cellist Jacqueline Du Pre the finest musician ever - though I was too young to have seen her live . Still,thank you for that musical observation. Brought back memories.
Chris refers to herself as Chris. I'm sure over time she'll adopt other names, much like Alan, who used to call himself SirAl, WaffAl and even Alastair occasionally.
WaffAl - must have missed that one :o)
Maybe she could be Chris't' the saviour if she gets things right😁