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Take another minute to look at the board of director profiles for Ekso.
I think Amy Wendell would make a terrific CEO herself. She seems to have proven herself the best at building companies and has the most relevant degree. As a second choice, I think Stanley Stern is the smartest one on the board (less involved than Amy, but making more money for the amount of work is my guess - working in a money industry does that) Maybe it's bias for the Harvard Degree.
http://www.eksobionics.com/leadership
I'm not sure it matters if they get FDA approved. The patent I just posted about is a very strong step in this direction I believe (not just pending, but accepted).
Tom Looby has a master degree and worked for Kodak and Bayer.
Russ has a degree in BioResource and Agricultural Engineering from California Polytechnic. He is a California registered Professional Mechanical Engineer and has two granted patents and another seven pending.
Between them, they are probably going to do a fine job. If someone from the outside is brought in, we can assume they will be highly qualified.
Oh snap! Now it makes more sense: "Gait orthotic device and method for protecting gait orthotic device and user from damage"
http://www.freshpatents.com/-dt20160204ptan20160030272.php
This patent was only accepted on the 4th of February. It talks about having airbag type devices to cushion a fall, springs, etc....
I think it's perfect timing to send this to the FDA, showing their plan for safety. Is it a coincidence that EKSO has until the 7th of this month to submit further information?
I purchased 1621 shares of EKSO today, with a limit order of .93 cents. Filled at .925
I now own 10621 shares at .9376 cost basis
I thought about buying more of other stocks I found interesting currently, but resisted --- hoping that it was a bird in the bag with the TALOS suit coming out in 2018.
I think it's very unlikely he will be a competitor. For one, he owns tons of stock in EKSO - so if he does too well, he is diminishing his own value. Also he's put so much time/effort into it that I think his resources are mostly drained and all his hard work is already patented and owned the company (just think how long FDA approval will take). I think it would be extremely difficult to restart. I'm also very curious where he goes, and I do assume it will be robotics.
I think it's probably negative that Nathan Harding isn't sticking around as a Board of Directors member after stepping down as CEO. Most of the time I believe it's a general sign of unhappiness from the rest of the board to see to it that someone is completely removed.
There are always exceptions and the reason he is leaving could possibly be to the company's advantage even if they had liked him and appreciated his previous work, but less likely.
I think Nathan was 100% smarter about the technical details and mechanics compared to Tom, but Tom's masters in business will let him navigate the investor world with more ease and put those mechanics to work. Definitely a trade off, but at this point the technology is already more advanced and the patents have been built up - so now it's time to leverage the IP into sales and media attention and Tom will have an advantage there.
I would have viewed Tom's replacing Nathan as a slight positive (fresh eyes, new angles, different friends and contacts, etc) if it were not for Nate departing from the Board. This negative is slightly counteracted by the nice severance package given to Nathan (although this could have been set up when he was hired, I'm not sure and will research into this issue more)
Regardless of who is CEO, it's a good thing to see the board get hungry for sales. Also, the stock doesn't seem to have been hurt by the change of leadership. I'm personally disappointed they didn't keep Nate longer, but sometimes interpersonal skills outweigh intelligence.
My hope is that Russdon (Russ) Angold is nominated as a replacement CEO. I really like his personality and he is technically skilled as well. There is also the added bonus of the fact that he co-founded the company, so it's his baby.
For me it's Super Tuesday politics and a possible job promotion, but nice guess anyhow.
NEW SEC FILING, 8K
http://ir.eksobionics.com/all-sec-filings#document-11225-0001144204-16-084448
On February 23, 2016, Nathan Harding resigned as the Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors of Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”), effective immediately. Mr. Harding’s resignation from the Board of Directors is not the result of any disagreement with respect to the Company’s operations, policies or practices or other occurrence that would require disclosure under Item 5.02(a) of Form 8-K.
In connection with his termination, Mr. Harding entered into a Separation Agreement with the Company pursuant to which (i) the Company agreed to pay him a severance payment in an amount equal to his annual base salary of $275,000 (payable in accordance with the Company’s normal payroll practices) for a period of 12 months commencing on the effective date of his termination (the “Severance Period”), (ii) all of Mr. Harding’s currently outstanding stock options that would first have become vested or exercisable during the Severance Period if Mr. Harding continued to be employed by the Company shall become vested and exercisable on the date of Mr. Harding’s resignation (the “Separation Date”), and all stock options that are or become exercisable upon the Separation Date shall remain exercisable until February 23, 2022 or, if earlier, until the latest date upon which such stock options could have been exercised under the original award, and (iii) the Company will continue to make the employer contribution to the cost of Mr. Harding’s continued participation in the Company’s group health and dental insurance plans during the Severance Period. As a condition to his receipt of benefits under the Separation Agreement, Mr. Harding agreed to release all claims against the Company.
On February 23, 2016, the Board appointed Thomas Looby, the Company’s President and Chief Commercial Officer, to serve as its Interim Chief Executive Officer effective immediately. Mr. Looby will also continue in his position as President. Mr. Looby’s biography and, to the extent applicable, the information required by Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K are included in the Company’s definitive proxy statement filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 11, 2015 (the “2015 Proxy Statement”). Mr. Looby’s current compensation is described in the 2015 Proxy Statement.
A copy of the press release issued by the Company to announce the appointment of Mr. Looby as Interim Chief Executive Officer is included as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K.
I think it's possible they will start coverage of the stock. Another option is that they invest into the company, but I think the former is more likely.
Ekso Bionics meets with STERNE AGEE CRT today.
http://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2330603&headline=EKSO-Ekso-Bionics-management-to-meet-with-Sterne-Agee-CRT
I'm convinced EKSO is followed by so few people that the news hardly affects it. I think if EKSO was followed more closely, the 4th DARPA contract would have sent prices up 30% plus and the 15 million acquisition would have sent stock value down closer to 50 cents. It seems we see relatively small moves despite fairly big news in either direction, and for now I've gotten used to it.
I think it may require something massive, like FDA approval, in order for Ekso to build enough followers to have a more rational response to market news. I think we are the early birds for now.
NEW CEO!? Can't say I expected it. No idea how it will influence stock price to be honest. Not sure how I feel about it either. I guess I hope it's only temporary and they bring on a really big name.
http://ir.eksobionics.com/press-releases/detail/567/ekso-bionics-appoints-thomas-looby-to-interim-chief
NEW CENTERS WITH EKSO'S: http://eksobionics.com/centers/
I think the list is up to 106 now.
NEW PATENT: Machine to human interfaces for communication from a lower extremity orthotic
http://www.freshpatents.com/-dt20160218ptan20160045386.php
from the latest press release: "Over 190 international patent cases (granted or pending)"
I don't claim to understand the way the ratings/price target system works. It's probably 'trade secret' what they make their decisions on anyhow. The skeptical side of me thinks they just set good or bad targets to push it whichever way they want in the short term. I would love to see a good graph of the accuracy of analyst firms comparatively, I know individual analysts are ranked on their performance.
One day if remember correctly, a few months ago Ekso was reported (by a third party) to go from sell directly to buy at zacks, skipping over the middle hold. I checked there website a bunch after this happened, and I never saw it ever change off sell, so I don't know if they are always up to date or accurate when reported by a third party. Also Zacks used to have some sort of publicly available rank for EKSO - it was a red triangle saying it was rank 5, strong sell. Then for awhile it was rated 3 - HOLD. I don't know when this disappeared, but I don't see any public ranking available from Zacks on their website currently. I don't know whether it's standard protocol or if they are playing games, but since I have to guess: I chose not to trust analyst advice for the most part.
That being said, I think it's worth posting on here because many people do pay attention to analyst rankings. This 2.83 target and buy ranking from Zacks has been reported by multiple websites within the last couple days.
ZACKS GIVES STRONG BUY RANKING. $2.83 PRICE TARGET
http://www.thevistavoice.org/2016/02/18/zacks-analysts-set-2-83-target-price-for-ekso-bionics-hldgs-com-usd0-001-nasdaqekso/839379/
News from TheFly - I think Ekso may have a new analyst ranking soon!!
http://thefly.com/landingPageNews.php?id=2330603&headline=EKSO-Ekso-Bionics-management-to-meet-with-Sterne-Agee-CRT
I'm not sure whether it's a good thing or a bad thing they don't say how much they plan to get payed for the 18 month project. I guess it doesn't really matter if the army decides to place a massive order. In both the RE2 article and in this PR, there is a lot of talk about testing for large production orders.
Ekso Bionics will engage Under Armour as a subcontractor in the third phase of the program to test the system’s durability and ability to be manufactured at scale, and support beta testing of the suit at the Army Research Laboratory Human Research and Engineering Directorate at the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.
(I inserted the bold text into the quote above)
Maybe they honestly don't know how much they will get payed, perhaps it depends on results. In any case, it will reflect upon the EPS for Q1 2016 - so I guess we will find out in due time.
Holding EKSO long.
BTW, hoping to close up 5 cents today. Only up 2.5 now, but I think more people will hear about this news as the day goes on. Too bad the market isn't doing well today in general.
EKSO BIONICS™ SELECTED FOR DEVELOPMENT OF NEXT-GENERATION DARPA EXOSKELETON
http://ir.eksobionics.com/press-releases/detail/566/ekso-bionics-selected-for-development-of-next-generation
RICHMOND, Calif., Feb. 18, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB:EKSO), a leading global robotic exoskeleton company, announced that it was awarded a contract to develop a new exoskeleton design for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Warrior Web program. The new initiative is focused on the creation of a groundbreaking flexible exoskeleton designed to reduce the wearer’s energy output while also assisting with load carriage. This is the fourth time DARPA has tapped the company’s Ekso Labs™ division for its unparalleled exoskeleton knowledge to develop a more advanced generation of exoskeletons.
“It is an honor to once again be selected by DARPA to deliver on another valuable project that will benefit our soldiers. This is a follow-on project from our first Warrior Web project, which we were subcontracted on by Google’s Boston Dynamics, and will develop a related, but very different technology. We share DARPA’s commitment to advancing functionality for cutting edge exoskeleton technology and look forward to leveraging our world class IP portfolio to help design a customized suit that will improve soldier performance by alleviating musculoskeletal load,” said Russ Angold, Co-Founder of Ekso Bionics and President of Ekso Labs™, the engineering division of Ekso Bionics.
With over 190 international patent cases (granted or pending), Ekso Bionics is a leader in Intellectual Property for robotic exoskeleton design, and has extensive experience providing technology to partnering organizations such as U.S. Special Operations Command, Boston Dynamics (now of Google), and the National Institutes of Health. This phase of Ekso’s Warrior Web project will be designed to DARPA’s program guidelines over the course of 18 months. Ekso Bionics will engage Under Armour as a subcontractor in the third phase of the program to test the system’s durability and ability to be manufactured at scale, and support beta testing of the suit at the Army Research Laboratory Human Research and Engineering Directorate at the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.
“Under Armour is excited to bring our innovative approach to problem solving and product development to this next generation of exoskeletons. The partnership that we have established with Ekso Bionics to provide our soldiers and civilians with cutting edge technology continues to be rewarding, and we look forward to helping advance this initiative,” added Sam McCleery, VP of Global Innovation for Under Armour (NYSE:UA).
Ekso is at 101 different centers across the world, many of which have purchased more than one. This page is frequently updated:
http://www.eksobionics.com/centers
TALOS will have LIQUID BODY ARMOR according to a businessinsider article released in October 2015.
http://www3.businessinsider.com/the-militarys-iron-man-suit-called-talos-will-arrive-in-2018-2015-10
Bell, here's something you might not realize. They don't have to go cash flow positive in order to beat their guidance. Assuming they lost 14 million and not the 20 million that was predicted, they will have done much better than their estimates - and people will be pleased. Keep an eye on EPS versus the analyst predictions.
See the company's expected profits here:
http://www.4-traders.com/EKSO-BIONICS-HOLDINGS-INC-15311819/financials/
The ARMY is building an exoskeleton simulator for research. See my other post for the link
Robotic Exoskeleton SIMULATOR will be built by RE2 robotics, but also with Ekso Bionics collaboration.
http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2016/02/12/re2-robotics-to-develop-exoskeleton-simulator-for.html
THE KEY IS THAT THIS IS FOR THE ARMY'S RESEARCH, NOT SOCOM
Socom's research budget 500 millionish in 2015, The army's research budget is closer to 21 billion.
Let's just say that I hope the Army likes their research.
Speculatively, Ekso might someday get an Army Contract. That would be enormous. Ekso could be as big as Lockheed Martin 20 years from now, anything is possible.
I think attachable/detachable crutches will be a nice midpoint to allow some walking without hands over very flat ground. Imagine this: Walk around where it's flat with your hands free, then if you want to go over gravel - you pull out the crutches. (Much like Tesla having autopilot-like features over only very flat, well marked roads)
Ekso might already have technology to balance itself and is simply being held back because of FDA regulations and safety concerns. I doubt this however, I think the team at Ekso sees a nice clear road ahead of them and they want to set up roadblocks for competition early.
The device will still benefit from crutches in the short term. The patent starts off having to do with having attachable/detachable crutches. Basically people standing still that want to use their hands, so they attach the crutches to the suit temporarily, then detach them again when they want to start walking again. Very simple.
The devil (for the competitors) is in the details.
Their devices will use a lot more battery power if they aren't able to intuitively use the crutch supports as they move and change. Specifically, mechanical work to maintain balance that wouldn't be necessary if they were sensing and reacting to location/position of the crutches.
Furthermore the patent leads the way into completely hands free devices which have no crutches whatsoever, but this will take time. This may well happen soon, so it's crucial to get the patents for the technology now when that becomes the standard. Competitors will have a much more difficult/expensive time trying to catch up when Ekso does release a completely hands free model. That being said, I don't expect Ekso to full remove the crutches from their suit for at least another couple years. I think a couple years is a fairly short amount of time for an investment, despite the markets such strict attention to quarterly reports. It's important to remember that design patents last for 14 years by default.
EKSO WILL DROP THE CRUTCHES!!! I'm still just beginning to process what this will mean for expanding their market potential. If nothing else, it will be freaky cool.
http://www.freshpatents.com/-dt20160211ptan20160038371.php
NEW INSTITUTIONAL OWNERSHIP AS OF 12/31/15
http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/ekso/institutional-holdings
2 New institutional holders increases their positions
Still very low overall institutional ownership, but it's a start.
EKSO GOING HANDS FREE!!!!!! "Gait orthotic system and method for achieving hands-free stability"
New Patent:
"Gait orthotic system and method for achieving hands-free stability"
Application #: US 20160038371 A1
Publish Date: 2/11/16
http://www.freshpatents.com/-dt20160211ptan20160038371.php
Exactly. I just bought 933 more shares @ 78 cents this morning. This brings me to 9000 shares at averaged at .9399 cost basis per share. I wish I could bury my head in the ground and check on it in 3 years. I truly believe Exoskeletons are going to be a big revolution after 3d printing, Tesla, and Solar.
I would consider this my most risky investment in that it's the largest position I've ever had in a single stock (besides mutual fund shares). That being said, I'm actually confident because of all the factors that hedge my risk.
For one, Opportunity Cost:
I used to have 75 grand plus in Franklin Templeton mutual funds. I recently withdrew all I had left when Franklin Templeton stock was (I think it was 48 or 50 at the time) - now it is down to $32
Two, Charity
SoldierStrong is still going to buy another 69 ekso gt's over the next couple years (11 bought so far) This prevents Ekso's sales from slumping too hard. If you don't think SoldierStrong can raise the roughly 12 million to buy all these suits, you should take a look at their board of advisors and corporate partners. SoldierStrong received a Presidential Call To Service Award too.
Three
Grants. Ekso doesn't have to borrow that much money (selling stock) if they aren't the ones paying. I think EKSO has done a terrific job at securing government grants to pay for data that will help support their product
No, although with that many shares I would put in a good till cancelled sell order. Even if it's at 6$ or 12$, Putting in a sell order prevents institutional traders from 'borrowing' your shares to short. Look it up if you don't believe me.
Anti-Dillution provisions are largely why Ekso was vulnerable to a short attack. Ekso used to have these anti-dilution provisions, guaranteeing that preferred stock can be converted into ratios that will allow for the cash value to remain constant. What this means is that if the stock falls to 50 cents, preferred stock would turn into twice as many shares as it would at the 1 dollar value.
Ekso GAVE UP THIS RIGHT. They removed the anti-dilution provisions for what I believe was a sign of good faith. I think they had the hopes that the stock was in a place where it wasn't going to fall, so it wouldn't be a problem. I believe this is the reason they were targeted by the Pump Stopper's short attack on Seeking Alpha. Now all their preferred stock aren't worth as much as they would like, so they don't want to give it away - and instead they have to do direct acquisitions in the hope of staying alive long enough to get some more good news.
Going forward, I don't think the manipulation remains other than the article still lingering on the web. I think the stock is too small to be effectively changed. My father (worked a financial planner) said that big firms often can't invest into a small cap company on the open market, because if they buy enough shares - the price will skyrocket on them, forcing them to buy too high, before creating a self imposed crash. I personally believe this is actually a pretty big force that keeps penny stocks out of the threshold of being large cap.
It certainly didn't kill the company yet. They resorted to some dilution to keep their own preferred stock, sort of going back on the good faith part of the deal. That being said, they board still wants to make money, and thinks this won't kill them. My opinion that the Ekso B.O.D. would only make this decision in the hopes/knowledge their preferred stock will be worth much more soon (at least before the end of 2016 is my guess)
I think penny stocks are inherently more volatile. I would not be surprised by the stock swinging +/- 40 cents with out any clear rhyme or reason. I'm only going to be panicked if the stock falls and stays under 50 cents for more than a week. If EKSO can break the penny stock bubble, there is no telling how far it will go. Monster Beverage had over 7000% gains when it went from a penny stock into an industry giant. I'll admit the fields are different, but still.
I own Ekso long, and plan on purchasing more in the next 24 hours (tomorrow morning hopefully)
The DOW is down triple digits, it's not because of anything company specific in my eyes.
New positive article on Ekso Bionics: http://www.insiderfinancial.com/ekso-bionics-holdings-inc-otcmktsekso-looking-to-rebound/114490/
National Science Foundation supports EKSO:
http://ir.eksobionics.com/press-releases/detail/144/ekso-bionicstm-joins-center-for-sensorimotor-neural
"As part of an ERC, CSNE is additionally supported by the National Science Foundation, who has also been a supporter of Ekso Bionics."
National Institute of Health Grant
http://ir.eksobionics.com/press-releases/detail/384/ekso-bionicstm-receives-its-first-nih-grant
I know this isn't brand new, I just thought these 2 Press Releases were worth revisiting.
There is a benefit to being cheap and made of plastic, and that is that you can reach a lot of people with low cost. In terms of replacing the wheel chair, they are a probably a more viable opportunity than Ekso.
The harsh reality is that technology isn't ready for exoskeletons to replace wheelchairs all at once. They don't walk stairs well, the batteries don't last long enough, they are too bulky...the issues go on.
This is exactly why Ekso isn't even attempting to replace the wheelchair in the way ReWalk is. They are taking one step at a time, and starting in the rehabilitation arena where the devices can be used by more than one person - allowing the high price point to not be an issue.
My problem with ReWalk is that is somewhat sensationalist. The device they have designed isn't going to live up to the hype that they themselves have created. Their only option is to improve the device very quickly, while not increasing the price quickly. I hope they will succeed. Still, I think it is an easier route to decrease prices slowly. The exact same way Tesla entered at a high price point, and now is releasing a low price point model. In this analogy, I see Rewalk as the electric golf car and Ekso as the Tesla.
IMO, Strongest Patent: "Powered orthotic system for cooperative overground rehabilitation" ... It think it will be huge if this gets approved.
The amount of work the company has done in the field becomes very apparent reading the patents. The physics and real time modifications required for balance are staggering when the patient becomes involved in doing part of the work.
It's my view that they are like rocket scientists compared to the competitors who are merely building fans. I truly think Nathan Harding and Russdon Angold are going to be the equivalent of Bill Gates in 20 years. I'm only minoring in physics at university (3rd year), but I know enough to tell that the team at Ekso is very smart. I also have very high faith in the military, so the fact SOCOM/DARPA chose them is HUGE to me.
No promises I'll be right or that I'm not caught in the hype of a temporary fad. My talent isn't always being the smartest person in the room. I think my talent is being able to pick out the smartest person in the room. Only time will tell if I'm right or not. That being said, I'm getting ready to buy some more stock while it's still under a dollar. I currently hold EKSO stock long and plan on buying more.
Hey Mick, Kick this off-topic poster back to the slimy board he came from, please.