Member Info for LUCAN

aye, there's the rub. How to survive wehile waiting for prosperous times again.

Glad to hear it. However, the company is really too small now to justify the expenses and hassles of a double listing - unless of course there are plans to build it using the share quote. A consultancy report this morning says Irish print advertising is likely to decline another 7% in the current year. They will have to run hard just to stay in the same place. Same applies to the competition, of course, and even more so. Hard to see the present range of Irish national titles surviving to see another Christmas.

You think it'll still be quoted in 5 years? Make hay while Denis is busy elsewhere

3 million bought yesterday in two bites, 8 million today in one, nearly 900,000 euro worth.. This is serious stuff.

The outlook here is for a take-private, once Denis has his ducks in a row. Hence the need to cut back the o'reilly stake.

maybe so. He's finished in this company anyway.

Tony must be in Caribbean

any opposition?

Nine full page ads in yesterday's Sunday Independent (supermarkets and similar). You can add a cent or two.

Monday morning (16th) is decision time for the INM restructuring, meeting opens 10 am. Will O'Brien and Desmond get their Christmas presents, or can/will Tony O'Reilly block them and insist on a better deal for other shareholders? We should know by lunchtime, not that anybody seems to care (apart from Phoenix, no comment in Irish media that I have seen).

Fascinating story in today's Phoenix, points out that since the crucial resolutions require 75% support, and Denis O'Brien cannot vote, Tony O'Reilly with one other shareholder could vote them down. Result would be to hand 70% of the company to the banks. That would not improve Tony's position, but it wouldn't do him any further damage either, and it would decimate O'Brien and Desmond's holdings. So, has O'Reilly the balls for it, at this stage of his life? He owes O'Brien no favours, that's for sure.

Just to spell it out, Desmond gets to buy about 40 cheap shares for every ten previously held. The rest of us can only buy 3 1/3 for every ten. I ask again, what did he do to justify such generosity?

Sorry, conclusions are right but sums are wrong. Desmond goes from 35.2 million shares (6.4% of 550m) to 175 million (15% of the enlarged share stock of 1165m). So he gets to buy about 140 million shares at the bargain rate of 7 cents, costing him about 10 million. To facilitate this, everyone else except D. O'Brien is diluted.

This is a very good deal for Dermot Desmond, who gets to buy over 8 million new shares at 7 cents a share, approx 13 new shares for every 10 previously held (raising his stake from 6.4% to 15%). Not so good for the rest of us, who can buy only 3 1/3 new shares at 7c for every 10 held. Consequently, all other holders except Denis O'Brien are being diluted by about 40% if they take up the rights, or 60% if not, to facilitate Mr Desmond's deal. I wonder what he did to justify this generosity, apart from helping to vote out the previous chairman. He is evidently a shrewd and fortunate man. Of course part of the object is to dilute the O'Reilly stake to a point where it cannot block O'Brien/Desmond's plans, whatever these may be. We shall see.

This is clever, you need to have shares to participate in the offer. That will certainly prop up the price in the interim. Interesting that D. O'Brien is not going beyond 29.9% - for the moment anyway.

I now see 3 million shares traded in Dublin today, which presumably explains the rise. Mostly sells towards close though.

Davy Stockbrokers might be able to help you, they are probably organising it. Nothing public yet so far as I know. Bizarre trading today, two small sells are the only reported trades, yet the reported price is up almost 20%. Alice in Wonderland stuff.

Problem is, there is a major placing or rights issue pending, they have to raise 40m under the deal with the banks. Looks as if the recent buying was intended to put a floor under the price in preparation. If the issue is at say 8p or even 6p, I guess the price will come down to that level for a while.

Hi, steptoe, nice to see another face. Up another 20% today. Either someone is building a stake, or someone wants to lift the price in advance of the rights issue. Could be either, I guess, or both. Not much in the recent results to encourage buying, so far as I can see.

Bit lonely on this board. Significant buying here last few days. Wonder why.