Something Stinks....

Roger Lawson a self-proclaimed paragon of virtue EXPOSED

 

We often ask ourselves how independent opinion is in the markets? This brings me to Roger Lawson the Deputy Chairman of ShareSoc a body campaigning for transparency among PLCs and shareholder rights. Surely these self-proclaimed paragons of virtue are beyond reproach?

Lawson wrote a piece after the storming UK Investor Show speech by Ben Edelman slagging of the blinkx critic as a showman, a man with nothing new to say and a man paid to write bad things.

I commented originally here however I am afraid that I have new revelations about Mr Lawson that I must share with you.

The critical point here is that Edelman did have something new to say and it was damning about blinkx. I quote here from a recent shareprophets piece you can find HERE

Edelman’s standard research contract – as he explained on the video – is that he charges a fee for doing research and writing a report. But if the research shows nothing amiss there is no report so the fee is less. That is his standard terms– less work = less fee. He states that clearly on the video. That seem okay enough and at least Edelman is 100% upfront on any financial interest he may have in blinkx.

…. no other revelations of note?

1. Blinkx bought nearly all if not all of the assets of Zango a firm shut down and fined heavily by the FTC for breaking the law.

2. Edelman showed clearly that blinkx is now engaged in exactly the same activities, even using the same code.

3. So blinkx is breaking FTC rules – is that not a matter of concern?

4. Edelman then showed that the blinkx independent report had not examined any of the relevant data but had merely consisted of chats with blinkx execs who said they were doing nothing wrong. That is a bit of a shock revelation is it not?

In other words the Edelman presentation was explosive and damning. But Lawson gave comfort to blinkx fans and was widely quoted on bulletin boards for dismissing the whole thing and for rubbishing Edelman. But there was something City establishment figure and all round good fellow, Jolly Roger Lawson, did not bother to mention in his piece.

Roger owns blinkx shares. Yes you read that correctly. He has been on the shareholder for some time...

So while Roger denounces Edelman who does declare a financial interest, Roger himself does not bother to declare his own financial interest when penning an inaccurate character assassination of Edelman, he relies on an old admission to his interest in blinkx as acceptable. '' I beg to differ '' You see when penning such critic's I believe an open declaration a moral obligation whether that be owning a single share or a million.

I have pursued this line with the deputy chairman of a body campaigning for greater corporate transparency but his response was to (I won't quote) suggest i'm an idiot

I guess I just do not understand these City types. I am just a thick Northern working class git. So I would have thought that an “idiot” was one who wrote a wholly inaccurate piece giving a misleading impression of material matters about a stock which (undeclared) he owned. But as I said, I am working class and a Northern git so what do I know?

Roger is the expert on transparency and questioning companies that break the law so I guess I should just go back to my slum housing underneath the motorway and leave it to City gents like Roger to look after the interests of plebs like me.

All the best

Doc

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http://docslaymanschatter.blogspot.com/

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Mid Week Chatter

 

After what has clearly been a busy month and start of the 2014 I now intend to wind down somewhat for summer and write more in depth analysis on small-cap companies. I lost a few follows on my twitter feed when I moved up the ladder significantly into large capped companies, this was a deliberate effort to demonstrate that the principles applied know no bounds as long as you remain disciplined,dogged and determined. Ocado at 617p was about as good as it can get for me with regards to the big fish short bear cry however Tower (Trp) is a close runner up. It had been muted that I could only skin a cat one way or to be frank allegedly '' I was picking micro cap companies to manipulate '' I discussed this with a few people at the investor show and quiet typically refuse to hide away from difficult questions so rather than argue tooth and nail my moral stand point I simply believed that the calls further up the chain would vindicate me! I cannot be sure this remark won't be thrown at me again but for those that doubt my integrity find my publicly posted coverage here or across my twitter feed.

Tower Resources (Trp) 6.5p - Short Sell Currently 4.3p from a sub 4p take profits)

Ocado (Ocdo) 6.17p- Short Sell (Currently 328p)

Rolls Royce (RR.) 975p - Long (Closed out at 1050) Target high 1100+

A few we mulled over along with Tate and Lyle and one or two others, I'm firmly back in the driving seat and after a few questions thrown at Afriag chairman Lenigas I hold court on which way I'll take the responses as quiet clearly old Leni must have thought he had some minor victory when he announced '' Piss off Doc you know nothing about announcing news to the market '' Well I guess he has a point but then he doesn't have a very long memory as hours later he was sat barrel chested proclaiming why a company like his (I assume Lgo) and another well known small cap aim E&P company wouldn't merge.

In his words '' It would cost £1 million - why should/would shareholders have to foot the bill for that? ''

That's a great point indeed why should shareholders foot the bill for such stupid decisions? I leave you with this: LGO pursued a "weak and thin" case....

Who picks up the costs accrued from a case that is weak or thin which failed at every stage? click here

I mean the markets are awash with contradictions from narcissistic egomaniacs who may believe a small skirmish provides short term bragging rights..... '' Wrong '' We know that the convoluted manner in which the markets are designed are such that making forward progress can be extremely tiresome, many retail investors kowtow to its heavy weighted demands but should you decide to set your barometer to grind then the rewards can breach all of your expectations.

As for Afriag well I hope that the management take on board the simple needs of its shareholders and move away from the '' Its ours '' mentality, to correct iceberg's blog (which I salute you for) Afiag is not co owned by Paul de Robillard and Dave Lenigas - It is owned by you the shareholder.

The company is an investment company which reversed into 3dr (The vehicle) the result was Scottish enterprise owned a chunk of the newly formed Afriag by default so saturated the market with there sell off. Clearly this and one or two personal issue's (the major shareholders '' not owners'') has held Afriag down. without any doubt the board are now aware what its investors need, we wait to see if DL will even open dialogue.

To coin a phrase by Virgil - '' They succeed because they think they can '' so at risk of sounding a condescending pretentious git I'll move on.

Paternoster Resource: I covered PRS a few weeks ago when you could buy at 0.3p or a tad below, the company seems to be going through the motions again and from what looks to have been bottom. This time NL has forged a relationship which meant that getting the paternoster word out was easier. Click here coupled with EOY results due anytime and a change in direction of Asta,Andiamo,Nap and one or two other projects it seemed bonkers that the SP languished at the sub 0.30p level

African Potash: I mentioned Afpo in dispatches over on the shareprophets and have been asked why is the Sp preforming so badly after a great rise up from 2 to 4p. I guess the attention is on Elemental who had a firm offer from the Chinese, this deal looks unlikely which could mean if Afpo's technical guy Non Exec Dr Dorling has done his sums correctly then Afpo have a potash licence ready and waiting. This has to be where Marlow is assigning his time (quiet rightly) however we can but wait to find out. '' Would anyone decry a takeover? '' I suggest not.

Ashley House: Away from resource we have Ash, the company has been on the back of a torrid time as she slid from nearly 30p to 11p, things seem to be on the road to recovery and this little company could well be trading at double today's share price however patience is needed here for a solid 12 month investment.

Northcote Energy: Came to market on the back of a fashion in these onshore oil plays click here however over recent times we find Nct flat as a pancake scrapping the barnacles off the barrel in some respects. Being a stickler for recovery plays I addressed Northcotes ethos of identifying proven resources of a producing nature. Again another great start for an Oil & Gas company to actually have some of the black gold on tap. To split the atom of depression here. Nct has been down on its luck within, what is a less than buzzing peer group although the Ad. Doc. (Link provided) shows that the marketcap is now at that of the assets cost. $10m back in 2012 so how much downside is there at £5-6m? Not alot hence my suggestion it will lift

All the best

Doc

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http://docslaymanschatter.blogspot.com/

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(These are but opinions derived from my own experiences and thoughts and do not adopted as statement of fact)

BrokerManDan - Back In The Saddle

 

 

 

BMD - Takes No Cheap Shots From Bob

Recently we received word that Dan had yet again defied the bully boy attempts of the legal system, Dan I believe had some business dealings with a local builder who mistakenly thought BMD was all mouth and no trousers. '' Big mistake on all accounts '' Bob (The builders name remains anonymous) confronted Dan flexing his guns and offering typical bully boy threats before attempting to clout the old war horse, Dan's a tidy scrapper from up this neck of the woods and doesn't take shit from anyone particularly not jumped up Bob with his fake suntan and popeye like arms.

Needless to say the act of self defense and defiance sits my old mate BrokerManDan at the top of financial hard knocks, I weighed him up when I met in Manchester during 2013 and while his polished appearance may have some believing Dans been put out to graze, I judge a man by the pace they walk (quick) along with the size of their hands! I'd hazard a guess that BMD will remain marching on many a battle front shaking his fist with disapproval before being retired to the upper paddock.

Welcome Back

Doc

Ben Edelman @ UK Investor Show 2014

I had the great pleasure of meeting Prof. Ben Edelman and regardless of personal belief or the very fact I'm simply a dumb Northerner '' thick in the head and broad in the shoulder '' the findings were compelling nonetheless. Typically the retail investing worlds forums lit up with misinformation both regarding Mr Edelman's attendance of the show, allegedly he was stuck at a London airport whilst immigration/passport control held Mr Edelman which could well of prevented him even making the show Saturday afternoon. Typically this a great example of Blinkx bulletin board fodder attempting to create a storm in a teacup, I met Ben Friday and unless he has a twin or it was scotch mist i witnessed then he was in town well in advance of the UK Investor Show on 5th April so conclude categorically that Prof. Edelman had safely arrived in London days earlier and without complication.

The blinx story or in fact Edelmans wasn't one I had particularly followed too closely until the findings were published early in the year, at this point my spider sense triggered '' How clear cut could it be? '' I mean not being a boffin or educated man I held some anticipation as to how clear cut his findings would be to understand to the layman. Within minutes it was quite apparent that this was not a new case with FTC shutting down and reforming these practises in the U.S so how and why is Mr Edelman in town talking about blink? Blinkx appear to have inconsistencies in its practices/transparency of which highly profitable yet dreadfully unethical.

I read a report by sharesoc which appeared to be fair in all of about half of its content thus the other half representing something very different than my experience. To label PBE '' not a modest man '' has absolutely no bearing of his ability to bring to surface the dirty business of the Internet which is fast becoming a lucrative frontier for criminality,unethical practices and much worse. In my opinion a disingenuous man could have focused on his achievements of becoming a professor at Harvard at 27 or perhaps his web sheriff reference by Nobel prize winning economist Alvin Roth (cough ''the wild west'') or his aunt Marian Wright Edelman a civil rights and children's advocate or his uncle Peter who resigned his position within the Clinton administration in demonstration against a law that required welfare recipients work, his parents (Father) Daniel a civil rights attorney or (Mother) who works to prevent abuse, I suggest this may explain an inherent passion for '' the greater good or perhaps all that's right '' The business community would have you believe that Mr Edelman is a loose cannon standing alone as a paid mercenary rather than a freedom fighter however I refute these claims and believe that had Ben Edelman '' not been modest '' then he certainly could have hammed up his historical family associated battle;s to correct '' bad practices '' whether as web sheriff or not

'' This is helping make the Internet a better place, said Brian Kenny, Harvard Business School’s chief marketing and communications officer.''

David Vladeck, former director of the FTC’s consumer-protection bureau, said his agency also followed his work and sought out his advice. Now a Georgetown University law professor, Vladek groups Edelman with a small cohort of Internet activists and technical experts, including Ashkan Soltani and Stanford University’s Jonathan Mayer, both known for their crusades for consumer privacy.

Its tough to pick a hole in his presentation which will go live and viral pretty soon but my interpretation of the presentation were Mr Edelmans findings rightly open debate on the practices of just one of many and whilst blinx refute most of what Edelman says its pretty clear that the legal team sat in front of me were looking far more concerned than the man on the stage.

I believe uncertainty will bring negative expectancy thus the result a bigger hole in the pocket of faithful shareholders of blinkx but you cannot blame Edelman for presenting the hole in the boat of blinkx. I have no material interest and never have nor do I have the intellect of Prof. Edelman but from a layman's viewpoint it was very revealing and very well presented.

We will see how the markets and legal team take and counter but there was no rebuttal by blinkx.

We watch and wait but the risk has increased once again for those of you looking to buy.

Keep your pecker up...

Click  here for Ben Edelman Interview  - 8/4/14 (Response)

Click here for the Full UK Investor Presentation by Ben Edelman

Click here for latest Ben Edelman Release - 9/4/14 by Ben Edelman

DocsLaymanChatter XXIII

Bulls Vs Bears

This morning I look back at the weeks events with a level of enchantment, as the markets casts its spell upon investors. This week we have looked up the chain at the long and short position calls being presented to investors.

We here at DLC have tried to demonstrate when the value of a large company has been beaten down it can provide some short term relief to small-cap Investor/Traders, diversity is the name of the game folks and in order to continue winning or curtail loss then we can never fear foraging elsewhere.

The usual theme here is rounding up small-cap companies which has left an element of doubt or question over readers minds, '' Why does dlc not venture up the chain '' This week we have set out some of these companies as the passage of time will tell if we have the metal to build a strong enough call over the next year.

The UK Investor Show takes place on 5th April, I'll be there in my tracksuit and trainers meeting and greeting fellow P.I's please drop me a tweet at https://twitter.com/DDS_Doc_Holiday if your coming and I look forward to hooking up with you prior or post the informal chat on how to survive and beat the market.

Rolls Royce: (RR.) was hammered down on allegation of fraud (Bribery) along with a stable yet static forecast on growth for 2014, However profits are up 23% for 2013 and the long and short of it is the claims or suggestions are not a new story to overseas business. The '' When in Rome '' approach has to be taken if we are to remain realistic. Whilst RR. trades north of 950p then a likely revisit to 1200p is on, a tighter outlook from us is to find a long from 990p

Tullow Oil: (TLW) Disappointed fans with a setback from its well on the Langlitinden prospect in Norway where is the explorer is a 15 percent partner, will be plugged and abandoned after the operator failed to find commercial levels of oil.The drop appears to be unkind to Tullow who flew into the spot light after the Tano block finds in Ghana '' This will take some beating and without a huge drop in the markets then sensibility will prevail.

Tate & Lyle: (Tate) I stumbled across Tate midweek as the chart showed it's Rsi was its weakest for 3 years so whats new? Well Tate&Lyle popped up in the news as one of its sites reportedly had an explosion:

Lafayette Fire Chief Richard Doyle said when firefighters arrived at the scene Wednesday, Tate and Lyle personnel told fire crews the situation was under control. Doyle said because the Lafayette Fire Department works closely with Tate and Lyle personnel and provides training to them, fire crews left the scene because they felt confident the situation was under control.

“If they’ve given us information that says the situation has been taken care of, we’ll send someone from our department in with their personnel,” Doyle explained. “They’ll verify what the situation is, and that it’s safe, and that we don’t need to provide any other further assistance. ”

Doyle said no one was injured in Wednesday’s incident.

Fear will recede and normal service should resume even if numis lowered its advisory to a hold. '' Long punters should start to appreciate the buy as traction is found '' 

Ocado: (Ocdo) Seems grossly over priced at 600p and while only the William Wallace type shorter's are taking their place, I'd say at this level its time to start to see the downside, with a P/E of a hundred or two coupled with some plain old common sense I'd say Ocado will come down to earth with one big bang, Cautious shorter's hold on for the confirmation but the brave war horse may be galloping in now as they posture for an assault on York. 

Quindell: (QPP) I mentioned Quindell were well overheated, infact similar to Ocado its gasket seemed to be buckling under the steam of its rise and when the pressure came to a head the obvious took place, '' So what for QPP '' well the reality is the city / money has been having a right old merry dance with Quindell however facts are its overvalued so 20p fears far outweight 50p excitement. The claims of stumping up £23m and 325m shares backed by broker coverage is the smoke and mirrors behind the rise to house the deal... '' I could be wrong however feel its worth considering after all this is Aim, lets look back in 3 months ''


All the best

Doc

https://twitter.com/DDS_Doc_Holiday

http://docslaymanschatter.blogspot.com/

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DocsLaymanChatter XXII

Another mixed week in the markets with some onus being attributed to the sustainability and credibility of the recovery. I think we all all know that there has been no epiphany however we have to take some of the growth as gospel. The real problem is investors/traders alike from both the wholesale and retail don't have any deep rooted trust and on this basis we have obey the golden rule of not following peter pan.

As always the DLC audio's have been as popular as ever and of course my notoriety amongst the unsophisticated mug punters seems to proceed me. Don't take my word for anything follow the public domain for your facts.

I must say this weeks tug of war in the media has grown stale '' Put up or shut up ''



Paternoster Resources: The company failed to excite with news of a few RTO's breaking down, So what new with PRS in 2014? The company is showing clear technical signs of bucking the downward trend in the 2h 2013 with the Rsi forming a floor and consolidating at 0.26p. From the start of 2014 the techs have showed a journey to 0.37p should we see that breached and with some room for the rsi to continue a stretch of the legs further towards 0.41p & 0.48p - Coupled with some further fundamental developments and a strong cash position the upsides looks to far outweigh the down.

Karelian: I have been asked a lot about KDR and whilst there is some clear potential to revisit the high of early January, the main factor for me is the stock is consolidating at this level before any future moves down or up, its come a long way in a short amount of time and personally I'd wait and see before following the money in or out right now. (One to watch)

Sareum: Have managed to claw back some of the ground it lost over the last 6 months, if 0.70p goes then a further push back towards 1p are on the cards, Some early support is forming as investors and traders alike hope for another 2011 Rns pump from the CEO Tim Mitchell

Westminster Group: The SP bounced of support at the 70p level leaving the old faithful excited at the potential of forthcoming contract news, technically the stock is starting to look like its losing the war however the news is rumored to be imminent and one last pull back wouldn't surprise me however the support has held on this occasion and this could well be that very episode before the bells and whistles breakout. looks plenty of upside but set a stop in the mid/high 60's if your uber cautious

Last week was a predominantly resource based cover, diversity comes in all shapes and sizes....


All the best

Doc

https://twitter.com/DDS_Doc_Holiday

http://docslaymanschatter.blogspot.com/

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DocsLaymanChatter XXI

 

Have we become disconnected

As we embark on a new week, we leave a destitute one behind having myself scaled back 2/3 of my entire portfolio I sit scratching my head as exposure and volatility in the markets are the recipe for success if you possess the confidence of your own convictions.

To be frank I feel/felt that the news flow over the last and next week will quite simply be taken in a bad light regardless as the global recoveries sustainability is the new keyser soze in the markets.The interpretation of what drives the markets is derived from an ever revolving door thus fear has to come in many formats as does its contrary emotion of relief or jubilance.

When we consider taking a position whether a short term trade or a longer term view we still have to consider the wider factors attributed to fear or jubilance as this helps guide our entry/exit when completing an action. This very point is really one of the main hazards which is flippantly overlooked, After a year it is really time that readers hold an armoury of information to help circumnavigate the markets woes and windfalls.

As always this week we look at a few companies that are either on my radar or taking up a position of popularity amongst the retail...

 

Two mining stocks at each end of the spectrum

Kazakhmys: Plummeted to earth in a Felix Baumgartner fashion, A little while ago I called it a buy which was clearly wrong as it proceeded not to be my finest call however I tuned into my old pal Gary Newmans Piece here and have to say I completely agree with him that KAZ is due some serious relief and an old warhorse investor would be scaling into this company and buying into the weakness.

Kalimantan Gold: Tanked after its news that its major partner freeport had pulled out of its Ksk project leaving investors perplexed and heavily speculating, I had a chat with the gaffer Faldi last week and have to say the company is in much better shape than I initially thought, Briefly the company has a raft of interest in its assets which have seen significant investment to date. Tens of millions have been spent from this micro cap sub £2m Market Cap company '' I see a big rebound coming,'' Klg has $500k in the bank and have also made aggressive cuts to its cash burn which pretty much safeguards the business whilst it proceeds to open its data room. As of this weekend Klg are no longer tied to freeport so expect a more transparent newflow.

Round Up

Orsu Metals: I mentioned on the twitter feed as the simple facts are cash is king in a mining company and this one has plenty to go at, at 3.5p there is a stack of upside to the downside, we can analyze things far too much at times so I keep it simple '' People will wake up to the cash in its hand and see value '' Even poorly run companies have moments of greatness and its 10p bonanza not to long ago pegs a bullish hallmark in the chart.

Savannah Resource: Appears to have the retail bulls stirred up which now shines the light of liquidity in its eyes, This company has not gone unnoticed and was mention a little while ago here, having perked up a fair whack since then I maintain SAV is one to follow and hold if you're in, although buying at over 6p could be dicey until we see a technical or fundamnetal bias towards buying (watch)

Greatland Gold: Was tipped in the 30's and after a significant rise I advised taking some off the table both here and sula, clearly this was the right call and after realising rises of hundreds of percent we have to as investors digest the gravity of these gains and bank it.

Looks like a resource round up this week however during the week we'll look to diversify (If soundcloud comes back online that is apologies if your missing the audios, technical fault onsite at the mo)


All the best

Doc

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http://docslaymanschatter.blogspot.com/

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(These are but opinions derived from my own experiences and thoughts and do not adopted as statement of fact)