Marlin

[Balance]

So very true Balance, a good summary

Took the institutional shareholders to force a change in directorship, and then management before Sky City started turning around.

All those lost years and lost opportunities - because Evan Davies and his lackey, Alistair Ryan, were too busy empire building and destroying value for shareholders.

It is going to take the same sort of changes before Marlin will stop being a dog.

Woof woof - from overseas.

[percy]

Funny.? I went to a SKC presentation given by Alistair Ryan a couple of years ago,put on by local broker Hamilton Hindin and Greene.I only went along to hear Mark Waller from Ebos speak.Anyhow Alistair Ryan so impressed me I brought some SKC shares.He out lined their future plans for all of their Casinos.All made good sense to me.He knew the business inside out.

[janner]

How did you know that " he knew the business inside out ".. Percy.. .. Do you have some experience in the running of casino's.. :-))

Or was he just a good talker ??

Not picking on you .. Simply trying to identify which of the impressions given on here ( Balances or Yours ) are closer to the truth..

Disc.. Not a visitor to SKC or holder.. Not a holder of Marlin .. Thank goodness.

[percy]

Really the way he answered questions from the floor.

[Anna Naum]

The direction the SKC SP took once they drifted away from the core asset of Auckland suggest that Mr Market eventually took a dim view of the expansion no matter how well management might have been at explaining it. If I had 50c for every time SKC management had said in meetings that Adelaide was a great buy and it would soon start to turn around, that they were now getting the right response from the State authorities re expansion, that the carpark was the answer and construction would soon begin.....I would have a lot of $$$ to spend at SKC in the fancy high rollers room.

[percy]

The direction the SKC SP took once they drifted away from the core asset of Auckland suggest that Mr Market eventually took a dim view of the expansion no matter how well management might have been at explaining it. If I had 50c for every time SKC management had said in meetings that Adelaide was a great buy and it would soon start to turn around, that they were now getting the right response from the State authorities re expansion, that the carpark was the answer and construction would soon begin.....I would have a lot of $$$ to spend at SKC in the fancy high rollers room.

Fair comment on Adelaide.

[Balance]

How did you know that " he knew the business inside out ".. Percy.. .. Do you have some experience in the running of casino's.. :-))

Or was he just a good talker ??

Not picking on you .. Simply trying to identify which of the impressions given on here ( Balances or Yours ) are closer to the truth..

Disc.. Not a visitor to SKC or holder.. Not a holder of Marlin .. Thank goodness.

Mr Ryan might know a lot about casinos but he did not seem to a have clue about how to make acquisitions and make them work.

[Anna Naum]

Mr Ryan might know a lot about casinos but he did not seem to a have clue about how to make acquisitions and make them work.

But he did (and continues to) show a great ability to portray calm and knowledge of a situation that others are orchestrating. Mr Evans was the man making the big moves at SKC with regard to expansion etc that got SKC into trouble, however it was Mr Ryan who told investors that they knew what they were doing and everything was going to be OK.

Now we have Ms Fisher making the decisions and Mr Ryan telling us they know what they are doing and everything will be OK. Sound familiar!

[Anna Naum]

I note with some interest (and again missed by the financial press) that the main stock Marlin wanted to talk about at the AGM was the fund deciding to invest in VW. After the big deal they made about how this illustrated the smarts and new direction of the investment team I find two points interesting.

1. VW does not feature in the top stock holdings in the latest report from MLN
2. When Marlin floated (and most reports I have read from them ever since) they talk about being a small to medium cap company investor. VW I think in most investors minds is anything but a small cap. Does this mean that by stealth Marlin is no longer following the mandate for investment that it has claimed for all these years?

[Balance]

Anna,

1. It may have only been a very recent investment, eg prior to the AGM but enough time to include in a pre-printed newsletter.

2. A very very good point. It is an admission of defeat by Marlin's investment managers that they have abandoned the small to medium cap strategy. However, it could be argued that with a new investment manager (Roger Garrett replacing Ken Applegate) that this was a natural consequence. Nevertheless, it should have been put to the shareholders that this strategy was going to change.

Surely this is a material departure from the prospectus intent and any unit holder who disagrees have right to exit - at NAV?