ragnarisapirate Posted December 4, 2011 Share Posted December 4, 2011 Hey, I was curious if there were any residents of Washington State on this board. I am pretty long a card room operator in the state (Nevada Gold). Presently, there is some legislation that would be huge for the company (their EBITDA would probably go up by 500%, maybe more), I was hoping that there might be someone on here that would be willing to email with me about the legislation and overall mood of the legislature. I am located a few thousand miles away, and figured that this might be a good way to get some "on the ground" intel. :) ragnarisapirate(at)gmail.com Really, even if you are not a Washington State resident, but have some insights that would be useful, I would love to throw ideas back and forth with you. -Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 5, 2011 Share Posted December 5, 2011 I know almost nothing about the company. From what I can tell, insiders have very little of the company...especially considering their fat salaries. If they thought the legislation in question was a high probability event, don't you think they would load up on the shares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ragnarisapirate Posted December 5, 2011 Author Share Posted December 5, 2011 I know almost nothing about the company. From what I can tell, insiders have very little of the company...especially considering their fat salaries. If they thought the legislation in question was a high probability event, don't you think they would load up on the shares? Attracting talent ain't cheap. Insiders have a good bit in options; all said and told, they have almost 15% of the company as a result. From what I gather, the legislation seems like a coin flip at worst; but, a Washington resident would likely have a better feeling for it. That said, I have been surprised that they have not been buyings shares. I would imagine that it might have something to do with the fact that they are constantly working on deals, most of which seem to have a material impact on results. For example, their last acquisition will increase revenue by more than 30%. If they bought shares anytime around this (which, really, could happen at any time- they are in talks over various management contracts as well), I would imagine that it would look really bad on them, and open them up to a whole lot of scrutiny that wouldn't be worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 5, 2011 Share Posted December 5, 2011 I agree that talent isn't cheap, but according to morningstar the executive suite is pulling down $1.5 million and the market cap of the company is around $19 million. So, some days 10% of the market cap is going to executive pay! As far as buying goes, couldn't they do some type of automatic plan then? I know they can do automatic selling for estate planning, diversification, etc. It certainly seems cheap though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ragnarisapirate Posted December 5, 2011 Author Share Posted December 5, 2011 I agree that talent isn't cheap, but according to morningstar the executive suite is pulling down $1.5 million and the market cap of the company is around $19 million. So, some days 10% of the market cap is going to executive pay! As far as buying goes, couldn't they do some type of automatic plan then? I know they can do automatic selling for estate planning, diversification, etc. It certainly seems cheap though. Yeah, that type of plan makes sense, but, with there being wide swings in stock price, they may try to shy away from that? It seems like insiders buying shares in smaller companies has a greater impact on the price of the shares than of bigger firms; almost irrespective of the types/sizes of purchases. That said, that is one thing about the company that I am at a loss over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ragnarisapirate Posted December 6, 2011 Author Share Posted December 6, 2011 Article in seattletimes today - looks like it will get opened up http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2016943073_gambling06m.html The politics of Washington State confuse me. I am somewhat surprised (on a moral level) that a Democratic governor seems to favor increasing the state sales tax (which, is arguably the most regressive tax I can think of) and cut things like Health and Human Services funding, rather than allow what are essentially slot machines that are already legal in parts of the state, be put into card rooms where people already go to gamble so that the state can plug a huge part of their budget shortfall. Then, I look to who the native american tribes (who don't want these things outside if their reservation casinos for revenue reasons) make their campaign contributions and it makes a bit more sense... the tribes contribute almost exclusively to democrats. By the way, the above is not meant to come off as an attack on democrats in the state of Washington or elsewhere, it's just as an observation in regard to the political climate where I (and, I am under the impression, a few other board members) are invested. This will be an interesting thing to watch unfold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ragnarisapirate Posted December 6, 2011 Author Share Posted December 6, 2011 Additionally, here is a great op-ed that just came out: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2016950119_guest07kealy.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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