Grand Banks Yachts

(01-11-2013, 09:45 AM)dydx Wrote:

(01-11-2013, 08:23 AM)investwisely Wrote: Lim's core business lies in casino. I doubt he is interested to put effort to revive GB, which is negligible compared to his core. Buying GB for Lim is like Saudi prince buying soccer clubs for entertainment purpose.

(not vested)

A rich man's toy can be a good business - and may be a good investment opportunity as well - if it is well established and managed, and serves a global market on a profitable basis. But of course, in GB's case, the recovery of the business towards normal profitability has taken quite a long time, and will need a bit more time and quite a lot of effort still.

In business, devotion is very important. If it's a toy, you play with it with your free time. GB's potential contribution is only a few million. It's nothing compared to Lim's other business which earns billions. Furthermore, not all Lim's ventures are for profit. Some are merely to complement his casino business even they are running a loss.

I never meant at all that Tan Sri Lim would or could treat his now 22.76% interest in GB as a toy. What I meant is that as a product, a GB luxury yacht is very much a rich man's toy, just like a beach house or a mountain lodge for vacation purposes.

I really don't think it is Tan Sri Lim's habit to throw away his family's money/wealth by buying into hopeless business; I am quite sure this is not what he had learned from his father Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, the deceased founder of Genting Group.

BTW, 2 IDs - Basil Chan and Heine Askaer-Jensen (also Chairman of the BOD) - have just bought GB shares from the open-market yesterday (1Nov13).....
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/BasilCha...eID=262385 [Basil Chan - 100,000 shares at $0.225/share]
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/HeineAsk...eID=262429 [ Heine Askaer-Jensen - 400,000 shares at $0.225/share]
Obviously, the 2 IDs are not stupid people or buying GB shares for the fun of it!

Hi Dydx,

Noticed in the past you were invested in this counter. Just curious, what made you decide to invest in grand banks then. What is their moat and are you still invested in it currently?
Secondly, despite the company posting millions of losses in the last 2-3 years and burning cash, what made you so interested in following them still? Not being sceptical or anything

(02-11-2013, 06:53 PM)CY09 Wrote: Hi Dydx,

Noticed in the past you were invested in this counter. Just curious, what made you decide to invest in grand banks then. What is their moat and are you still invested in it currently?
Secondly, despite the company posting millions of losses in the last 2-3 years and burning cash, what made you so interested in following them still? Not being sceptical or anything

Apart from having built a global brandname - which is now represented in 3 product series: Heritage, East Bay, and Aleutian - Grand Banks as a company had continuously paid out annual dividends from 1992 through 2008, and the business managed to grow during these years while moderated by the cyclical nature of the global yacht industry. The 2008/9 U.S. and global financial crisis had hit the yacht industry and Grand Banks particularly hard, including destroying a big portion of its independent U.S. dealers network, which has since been rebuilt to a large extent now. I believe that the Grand Banks business should be able to flourish again under more benign economic/market conditions and the leadership of a competent CEO. I thought the latest 1Q (ended 30Sep13) results are already suggesting quite a clear positive evolution of the business going forward.....
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/GB1Q2014...eID=261530

Including the extra $12.3m new cash capital raised from the recent successful rights issue, Grand Banks' latest NAV now stands at approx. $49.5m, including a cash reserve of $26.8m, which will provide ample financial flexibility to further grow and strengthen the business. The revised NAV/share of $0.286 (based on the enlarged 173.0m issued shares after the rights issue) does give quite a lot of asset backing and margin-of-safety for those who have subscribed for the new rights shares at $0.22/share, as well as for the 2 IDs who have just bought GB shares from the open-market at $0.225/share.

More info on GB's current business evolution from the presentation slides released during the AGM held on 31Oct13.....
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/2013_AGM...eID=262012

(02-11-2013, 06:31 PM)dydx Wrote: I never meant at all that Tan Sri Lim would or could treat his now 22.76% interest in GB as a toy. What I meant is that as a product, a GB luxury yacht is very much a rich man's toy, just like a beach house or a mountain lodge for vacation purposes.

I really don't think it is Tan Sri Lim's habit to throw away his family's money/wealth by buying into hopeless business; I am quite sure this is not what he had learned from his father Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, the deceased founder of Genting Group.

BTW, 2 IDs - Basil Chan and Heine Askaer-Jensen (also Chairman of the BOD) - have just bought GB shares from the open-market yesterday (1Nov13).....
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/BasilCha...eID=262385 [Basil Chan - 100,000 shares at $0.225/share]
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/HeineAsk...eID=262429 [ Heine Askaer-Jensen - 400,000 shares at $0.225/share]
Obviously, the 2 IDs are not stupid people or buying GB shares for the fun of it!

I think you miss out the point that GB is too small for Genting group. Lim could be using GB as a way to complement his casino business (regardless whether GB is profitable), just like Genting's Star cruise. Star cruise is losing tonnes of $$$.

Time to make a plan to inspect the latest and beautiful Grand Banks yachts and talk to the GB management, by visiting the upcoming 10-13 April 2014 Singapore Yacht Show to be held at the ONE°15 Marina in Sentosa Cove…..
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/Singapor...eID=289751

I tot of going, but sentosa very hot place and entry fee not cheap le

PUBLISHED APRIL 11, 2014

Singapore-listed Grand Banks Yachts to buy Aussie boat builder

BYANGELA TAN
angelat@sph.com.sg
PRINT |EMAIL THIS ARTICLE
GRANDBANKSYACHTS2014
Grand Banks Yachts Limited announced on Friday that it has entered into a conditional put and call option agreement to buy Australia's Palm Beach Motor Yacht Co Pty Ltd for up to A$10 million (S$11.7 million) - PHOTO: GRAND BANKS YACHTS

Grand Banks Yachts Limited announced on Friday that it has entered into a conditional put and call option agreement to buy Australia's Palm Beach Motor Yacht Co Pty Ltd for up to A$10 million (S$11.7 million).
Under the agreement, the two companies will grant each other options such that when exercised, will see Grand Banks buying all of Palm Beach's shares for up to A$8 million (S$9.4 million) in cash and A$2 million (S$2.3 million) in new Grand Banks shares to be issued.
A portion of the payment will depend on the FY2014 and FY2015 financial performance of Palm Beach, which is based in Berkeley Vale, outside Sydney, Australia.
Grand Banks will issue Palm Beach founder Mark Richards, 46, 11.03 million new company shares at S$0.2126 each, which he must hold for at least two years from completion of the transaction. This will give Mr Richards a 6 per cent stake in the enlarged share capital of Grand Banks which will increase from its current 173.00 million shares to 184.03 million shares.
Mr Richards - a seven-time champion skipper of the 628-mile Sydney-to-Hobart yacht race between 2005 and 2013 - will be appointed chief executive officer of the enlarged group.
Peter Poli will relinquish his role as Acting CEO and continue with his role as Chief Financial Officer of the enlarged group.
The transaction is subject to satisfactory due diligence and Grand Banks' shareholders' approval at an Extraordinary General Meeting to be convened.

GB is buying an Australian yacht producer - Palm Beach Motor Yacht Co Pty Ltd ("Palm Beach")- from its founder Mr Mark Richards for up to AUD10.0m in a part-cash part-share deal…..
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/Proposed...eID=291081 [11Apr14 announcement]
http://infopub.sgx.com/FileOpen/Press_Re...eID=291082 [press release]

This appears to be well-structured deal, as the payment to Mr Richards involves 2 tranches, with the 2nd-tranche of up to AUD4.0m in cash to be determined by a formula incorporating a "Target Profits" amount from Palm Beach of AUD2.64m to be derived by 30Jun2015.

Perhaps of greater significance is that GB has also found a new and committed CEO in Mr Richards, who is expected to lead the enlarged GB Group back to normal financial health and to greater heights.

With this corporate action, it does appear that GB should be able to get out from its current "watch-listed" status in due course.