Thanks, ambulance.
I sold about 10% of my holdings in the mid-fifties and another 10% at $1.02 because this is retirement money and EGMI is by far the biggest position in my portfolio.
But I still think they can sell millions of these things - and have fun doing it. One of the statements I particularly liked in the cc was this from Kevin Donovan: “And I would like to leave you with this final thought. Our mission on a daily basis is to maximize shareholder value. We definitely have the energy, we’re extremely interested in everything we’re doing with our platforms and with our partners, as well as growing our talent to precisely do that.”
I do think Kevin Donovan is a bit of an odd duck (but then, so am I). It’s hard not to like him though (and his contacts).
On the negative side, I would very much like to see a contract come through beyond Sovereign and Thomas.
-- I hope Sovereign is a capable group, but all I have to go on is their website, which is still incomplete, with sentences written in something other than standard English.
-- The Thomas cards look great, which is very encouraging, but the Thomas arrangement is a license where we do all the selling, although the fact we can use channels already established is very important.
-- My impression from past cc’s was that the soccer contract was in the bag, so I feel a bit misled about that.
I also don’t like to hear changes in projections with no acknowledgement of the change. (EGMI is no worse than other companies in this regard, of course. Apparently few people remember their own recent statements.) For example:
Q408 CC:
Q. Okay. And then, should we expect your tribal agreement with Sovereign, should we expect that to contribute in the first quarter, is that correct?
LC. It will come through ______ slightly in the first quarter, but we really expect it to start really kicking in in Q2.
Q109 CC:
Q. OK. And then last question, related to the Sovereign tribal opportunity. Obviously you guys get the minimum royalty fees that they kicked in this quarter. Can you maybe talk about how that business is performing and should we anticipate you guys maybe getting a little upside above and beyond the minimum royalty payments for this year?
KD. I think currently the key is the minimum, and anything above that is gravy. They are actively marketing and selling to several tribes in various regions throughout the U.S. and so we’re really working very closely with them.
LC. And, Todd, I think the important thing is when you’ve got new business like Sovereign is building, it does take a while to do focus groups, trials, and get it out there. But this is the foundation, if not for this year but real incremental revenue next year.
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And no, I haven’t spoken recently to IR.
Best wishes.
