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The fact that Burlend was canned suggests it is the dead wood theory. Revenue and net income also suggest the company is stacked high with dead wood.
Very true dlewisfl! 13 years and counting. Like all message boards, this is mostly entertainment. That said, what makes this IHUB VirTra message board different is the FACT, ABSOLUTE FACT that Ferris reads it multiple times every day and the FACT that it is in a prominent spot on VirTra's corporate website. Both of these things have always struck me as odd. Both of these things are also why I post here. If Ferris and some on his team did not read this, I would not post.
Speaking of not posting, me thinks VirTra/Ferris has strong armed his entire Advisory Board (which he confirmed still exists in the last conf call) and told them directly not to post here. All their previous posting has dried up. What a bunch of apparent sheep? How can CEOs be this insecure?
The greatest and best CFO of all time is current CFO of BELFB (Belfuse). His name is Farouq Tuweiq. I challenge Alanna to listen to the last several BELFB conference calls or read the transcripts on Seeking Alpha. It is better to listen to the replays though. What Farouq has done and continues to do shows exactly what the influence of a powerful, smart, brilliant CFO can be on a company. Several of the same opportunities exist at VirTra.
We now already know Alanna does not understand numbers, in the PR she said VirTra is "rapidly growing."
She might turn out to be a great hire, my guess is she outlasts the previous CFO.
Today's PR is also "so VirTra", they try to be cute and come across as sneaky/stupid. Just tell us who she previously worked with, was it Givens?, Johnson?, Ferris?, Richardson?
And why was VirTra so dead set on hiring a female? 3 in a row ain't a coincidence. Competence and Leadership should have been the first qualifications.
If she steps up and makes an open market buy of 20,000 or more shares, then she might prove legit.
If she steps up and exerts her will to fire Mulcahy, then she is smart and savvy.
If her hire results in filing quarterly reports within 30 days then she is awesome.
If she files end of year report within 45 days rather than 90 then she clearly is shareholder friendly and smart.
If her hire results in an early January PR that lays out guidance for the year then she is my new hero.
There are so many ways to improve this company, lets hope she is a driver.
Good luck to Alanna.
Ferris…Givens….Johnson…Mulcahy
Can’t any of these guys make an open market buy of stock?
The one good thing I suppose is the increasing likelihood that the company gets taken out at $8-ish.
By the way, Johnson is on the above list cuz he adds ZERO value to the company. His ideas on creating shareholder value are dated and ineffective. He is another example of Ferris surrounding himself with sub par talent.
Fix the Sales Org for goodness sake!
I would guess your recent buys will pay off nicely in 2023. I plan to add more shares in late December and throughout January and February.
Happy Thanksgiving to All!
So, is the stock dead until late March? Me thinks so. Maybe a little end of year tax loss as well? Not sure. Will any CEO or Director step up and make an open market buy of stock between now and 2023? Not a chance.
I’m sure surprised the stock hasn’t tanked. To have a PS closer to 2 than 1 in this market and with this company performance is rather remarkable to me. I did carefully sell some shares, but not enough to matter. Might buy those back late December.
Very true! I wear my emotions on my sleeve. I also have little patience for this sort of performance.
We are optimistic that Department of Defense fiscal year 2024, which started October of 2023 is the year we will start to demonstrate more concrete traction in the military market
He has been with the company in two different capacities for over a year. Impact has been worse than zero. He has generated no additional revenue and has spent a ton of money. Did you listen to the conf call? Givens said there would be nothing meaningful from Military until 2024. That is two years from now.
If you think VTSI is a great investment, buy the 9000 shares being offered right now at 4.70.
The problem is that annual revenues are rising at a snails pace. Barely even up in constant dollars vs 5 years ago, do the math it's true. The other problem is these sub $5mil quarters seem to happen on a very regular basis, at least once or twice every year. Ferris tries to sell them as "one of" sorts of quarters but that is simply not true. The last problem is the stock price, today it falls BELOW where it was in JULY, 2016. That is over 6 years ago! Absolutely terrible in terms of creating value for shareholders.
We need Ferris gone.
We need Givens gone.
We need Mulcahy gone.
We need an entire new BOD.
No sense of responsibility, No sense of urgency, No emotion.
Company culture flows top down.
No wonder the company is filled with sub average performance at every level.
CFO likely left when she looked around and thought….”not the clownshow I want to be associated with.”
Wow! I just listened to the replay of the conf call. Now I feel even worse than earlier. Neither Ferris nor Givens gets it. Neither understands that a conf call is for an audience of investors and potential investors. None of us give a ship about V3, none of us care how hard VirTra employees are working, we are sick and tired of excuses and the "woe is me" attitude that both of the co-ceos are projecting.
IT IS ABOUT REVENUE AND EARNINGS. NOTHING ELSE.
Worse part was when they said nothing meaningful is going to happen with Military until 2024. Worse part was when Givens said he was personally involved in helping to reduce a lead time on a part from 6 months to 45 days - the CEO is involved in this sort of activity. Worse part was when Ferris said people say "wow" when they see a demo of V3. Worse part was when Givens talked about cash on hand but made no mention of debt, that is pathetic and sleezy.
There were so many worse parts to this conference call that it is impossible to pick just one.
You should have waited another 18months and sold VTSI at $11 or $12 in mid 2021.
Revenue and EPS is all that matters. Don't Ferris and Givens understand this? Nobody freaking cares about backlog.
Nobody cares about having a nice headquarters.
Nobody cares about having the "best" most respected product.
The number one objective has to be revenue and earnings and revenue and earnings MUST MUST MUST come before all the glitz and glitter and chest thumping over stupid stuff that doesn't matter.
Think about how much of the $18mil direct offering money VirTra has pissed away in the last year with NOTHING to show for it. It has not resulted in even 1 penny more in revenue and, even worse, their use of that money has driven eps into the gutter. These guys do not give a rats backside about shareholder value or sustainable predictable growth, or even building a robust lasting business. To spit out a sub $5mil quarter like this at this time is borderline criminal. Every macro factor and every planet is/was in alignment and this team of clowns couldn't capitalize on it.
ELEPHANT in the room....Ferris and Givens ignore it! It is absolutely insane that they do not immediately fix the sales organization. It would solve all the problems with lumpy quarters. They keep trying to land whale military contracts which is fine if they were able to do it while still selling product to the 18,000 USA police departments. Apparently they cannot do either one very well. Fire Mulcahy and bring in a top notch sales guy.
It is also my belief that Ferris knowingly lied to all of us during last week's shareholder meeting. He said in very definitive terms that VirTra was the dominant sales leader in selling product to police departments. He said it clearly and he said it without qualification. Absolute lie. In fact, based on this quarter's numbers, VirTra is not only not #1, they are not in the top 5. FACT.
The stock is now destined for the $2 to $3 range and it really is not even worth that much. $3 x 11mil shares and the PS is still over 1. Overvalued now even at $3. This is just like a decade ago. Zero progress, zero shareholder value. Freaking clownshow.
Those of you on the "Advisory Board", and I assume it still exists since Ferris mentioned it during the shareholder meeting, I sure hope you ask some tough questions and provide some pointed advice to Ferris and Givens.
I wonder whose shares I keep buying?….and when they will run out?…..Been buying VTSI shares every other day for a couple weeks now.
Also….Meant to say Hello and Welcome! This board needs some new blood!
I didn't log into ihub til just now after the meeting otherwise I would have asked. I was the guy that asked about reorg of the Sales Org and also color on CFO short tenure. Also at very end asked about vote totals for each director.
If he answered my questions (and I doubt he likes me, and I signed my name to each question) why on Earth would he ignore your questions? Sort of makes me wonder who you are!
Ferris' answers were about what one expects from a CEO although I think he did an above average job in answering most of them and providing at least some new info.
It’s only because we have an east wind today, otherwise I’d be up in my tree. The rut is in full swing!
Interesting that the time of the meeting is 4:30pm eastern time which is 30minutes after stock market close. Other years it was during the day.
Yes, I will participate.
The stock market is tough right now. Even good numbers do not seem to get rewarded. I expect some sort of news tomorrow that comes out of the annual meeting. I expect Q3 revenue and earnings will beat analyst consensus….which is a low bar. I think VTSI stock trades between 4.5 and 5.5 until mid March, 2023.
Thanks!
Ok, I gotta ask.....Why do you continue to own the shares? Is it potential or the hope of a leadership change or lightning striking the Military resulting in a whale order to VirTra or or or? I am truly curious.
My rants aren't too different than yours I suppose. I just suffer from the occasional flare up of optimism that gives me hope one of these idiots will fix the sales org.
Back to the 4s, same price as in mid-2016.
Of course market cap higher now due to 11mil shares instead of 8mil.
Someone needs to ask the CEOs about 6+ years of ZERO creation of shareholder value.
At least a couple near term catalysts with annual mtg and Q3 report and conf call.
More disturbing is lack of trading volume.
Buying heavily, super strong buy
You should ask a question or two at annual mtg next week. Your one chance per year, and the company has to take it!
What the hell? There damn well better be a PR in the morning with some details....health issue? family issue? better opportunity at bigger co? something.
This is really unbelievable. They finally hire/appoint a credible (at least on paper) CFO and she quits or is fired in a couple months? Ridiculous. I wonder if she was a Ferris pick or Givens pick or both? No wonder the stock is dead.
I know. I did hold my nose. The reason I did vote yes for Ferris is because I believe he was instrumental in getting Givens to join the BOD and instrumental in getting him appointed co-CEO.
If revenues do not explode upward in the next 18 months then I will likely sell most of my shares. Q3 and Q4 of 2023 both need to be over 20mil and full year 2024 must be over $100mil otherwise Givens has failed. It’s that simple.
Voted YES for Ferris and Givens and the accounting firm.
Voted NO for the other directors.
I thought about a yes for Greene since he has purchased a few shares but then I thought back to what an uninterested jerk he was on the phone with me a few years ago.
And another thing…..while the Givens promo and his moves since have likely kept the activists from pulling the trigger I still wonder why Givens has not yet addressed the company’s #1 glaring deficiency….the Sales Org. Please fix it!
And another spectacular report today! This gets to $50 by Christmas.
I’ve never understood why VirTra does not do a better job explaining and separating out the STEP numbers each quarter and each year. Perhaps pre-ERP it was a difficult task? But now with ERP it should be easy. I’ve also never understood how the upfront costs on a STEP system is accounted for. I sorta know what they are doing but I think it could be done in more aggressive ways.
In my view you just spelled out THE #1 problem with VirTra perfectly and succinctly.
Those 2018 thru 2021 are brutal. Those are zero growth numbers no matter how you look at them. Even the 2021 number is less than 2018 in constant dollars! Pathetic. Now do the same with EPS over the same 4 years and try not to puke, it ain’t easy.
I own the stock now because of the new captain at the helm. I own it because of the potential. I own it because I still believe it is EASY to fix the sales org. But it is so frustrating to own because they simply refuse to address the elephant in the room.
Great info, awesome post.
I know I keep beating a dead horse, but why doesnt VirTra focus this same level of aggression and effort into their sales Org? Rapidly growing revenue would make everything else quicker and easier…..including the adaption of new technologies. It is clear that the current sales org has failed, Mulcahy has failed, what is your opinion on why VirTra fails to fix the problem?
Why can’t they even try to SELL products? Create a Sales Org for goodness sake!
Out in SD chasing pheasants. Glad I missed the PR until now. I HATE this type of PR because there is no mention of increased revenue or even a single big win as a result of the new tech. I also despise new tech in this case cuz it is a distraction and diversion of resources away from what the company is supposed to be doing. They are a training company or supposed to be. If they go down this new path, the company is dead.
Yes, that is certainly true. It would have been worse for them to have spent all the cash and not gotten the loans (longer term debt). Some leverage is a good thing. And these days having available cash is a good thing.
That said, the point I was trying to make is that VirTra always seems to do things backward. They spend money on infrastructure and projects in the hope that it leads to more revenue. What they should be doing instead is running the company with a sense of urgency and fear, they should go out and get the revenue first and then spend on necessary infrastructure. Run the company like you own it, not like you are a manager running it for a distant owner.
They have blown through $14mil in cash in less than two years without any operational improvements. I mean revenue, eps, CasHflow…..when I say operational.