The Final Word by Jim Thompson


An oft maligned group of importance to our industry is the stock analysts. These individuals, usually young, brash, and ignorant of the workings of our industry are easy targets. Let me suggest, however, that they are merely doing their jobs, namely serving as a proxy for shareholders in seeking a decent return. Their mantra is, “Give me more, give it to me now.” CEO’s that blindly succumb to this whining run the risk of destroying the companies they manage.

There is another side to this vignette worth considering and seldom practiced. You have experienced it if you have ever actively traded stocks. It goes like this: you have had a good run in a stock and are cashing in your shares-—it looks like the run is over. The question now is what to do with your profits and your original capital? Where can you go to get the kinds of returns you just experienced? This is where we are missing the point-—being ready with credible plans to convince those with the cashed-in profits to invest in our industry.

Credibility and real opportunity are important here, but reinvestment or new investments are not widely or creatively pursued. We are missing out on a large source of investment capital.