Post by luxetvox on Sept 6, 2023 14:04:08 GMT
TALK still suffers from the congenital hangover that afflicts nearly all SPACs (Sema4 anyone?). Between the manipulators, the quixotic projections of sponsors and managements, the derivative-linked trading through the accompanying warrants, SPACs almost always result in investors getting SMACKed.
But some muddle along showing occasional signs of life, though it remains to be seen if any can truly rise from the ashes.
Some here feel that Jon Cohen did a poor job at BRLI, and that's why he was passed over by PF as heir apparent. Maybe so. Opko has been so Opaque for so long that the facts surrounding GJG's departure may never come to light.
So JC left one year ago to join the BOD of TALK. A couple months later on Nov 8, 2022 he was named CEO. Since 9/30/22, quarterly revenues at TALK have had small but important increases: $29 mill, $30mm, $33mm, $35mm. So under Jon's leadership, measurable progress on the revenue side.
On Nov 7 '22, the day before JC was named CEO, the stock was $0.69. Today it opened at $1.61. So far, JC has given shareholders a 133% return since taking over. In the past few weeks, TALK has announced that they will be presenting at upcoming health care conferences by Cohen, Baird, Wainwright, and Wells Fargo. And just today, TriNet (TNET), the $6.5 billion market cap HR giant, announced that Jon Cohen will be joining a slate of speakers at their annual PeopleForce conference next week.
Spreading the word about the company you lead is not the same as shameless self promotion. But if you're going to get your story out there, you also need to produce. And Cohen is doing just that thus far in his short tenure as CEO. During the 7/27 Q2 conference call, JC said:
For 2023, we now believe we will achieve a total revenue in the range of $137 million to $142 million, up from $130 million to $135 million, while narrowing the adjusted EBITDA loss range to $16 million to $19 million as compared to our prior guidance of $21 million to $24 million for 2023. We also reaffirm that we believe we will achieve breakeven adjusted EBITDA by the end of the first quarter of 2024 with more than $100 million of cash on the balance sheet.
Tangible progress plus a proactive presence among investors produces rewards. On a ~$140 million annual revenue run rate, investors have accorded TALK with a $271 million market cap. And the company, despite a 90=% drop from the SPAC price of $10 in 6/20, the company has never done a reverse split.
WGS, forecasting ~$210 million in 2023 revenue (well above TALK), sports a $113 million market cap. It's had to raise huge amounts of money to stay afloat, and of course did a 1 for 33 reverse split. Is it a bad business, dumped on Kate Stueland by the savvy Phil Frost? Or is this second incarnation of Sema4, post SPAC, and essentially now a new company, merely the other side of the same coin? Time will tell. But one thing is certain. Ms Stueland is running a race against available cash, and against those betting against her. Let's hope she has the stamina to last.
Back to Jon Cohen. He's only been there a year and still has a lot to prove. But his leadership has thus far proven effective enough to bring buyers back into the stock.
But some muddle along showing occasional signs of life, though it remains to be seen if any can truly rise from the ashes.
Some here feel that Jon Cohen did a poor job at BRLI, and that's why he was passed over by PF as heir apparent. Maybe so. Opko has been so Opaque for so long that the facts surrounding GJG's departure may never come to light.
So JC left one year ago to join the BOD of TALK. A couple months later on Nov 8, 2022 he was named CEO. Since 9/30/22, quarterly revenues at TALK have had small but important increases: $29 mill, $30mm, $33mm, $35mm. So under Jon's leadership, measurable progress on the revenue side.
On Nov 7 '22, the day before JC was named CEO, the stock was $0.69. Today it opened at $1.61. So far, JC has given shareholders a 133% return since taking over. In the past few weeks, TALK has announced that they will be presenting at upcoming health care conferences by Cohen, Baird, Wainwright, and Wells Fargo. And just today, TriNet (TNET), the $6.5 billion market cap HR giant, announced that Jon Cohen will be joining a slate of speakers at their annual PeopleForce conference next week.
Spreading the word about the company you lead is not the same as shameless self promotion. But if you're going to get your story out there, you also need to produce. And Cohen is doing just that thus far in his short tenure as CEO. During the 7/27 Q2 conference call, JC said:
For 2023, we now believe we will achieve a total revenue in the range of $137 million to $142 million, up from $130 million to $135 million, while narrowing the adjusted EBITDA loss range to $16 million to $19 million as compared to our prior guidance of $21 million to $24 million for 2023. We also reaffirm that we believe we will achieve breakeven adjusted EBITDA by the end of the first quarter of 2024 with more than $100 million of cash on the balance sheet.
Tangible progress plus a proactive presence among investors produces rewards. On a ~$140 million annual revenue run rate, investors have accorded TALK with a $271 million market cap. And the company, despite a 90=% drop from the SPAC price of $10 in 6/20, the company has never done a reverse split.
WGS, forecasting ~$210 million in 2023 revenue (well above TALK), sports a $113 million market cap. It's had to raise huge amounts of money to stay afloat, and of course did a 1 for 33 reverse split. Is it a bad business, dumped on Kate Stueland by the savvy Phil Frost? Or is this second incarnation of Sema4, post SPAC, and essentially now a new company, merely the other side of the same coin? Time will tell. But one thing is certain. Ms Stueland is running a race against available cash, and against those betting against her. Let's hope she has the stamina to last.
Back to Jon Cohen. He's only been there a year and still has a lot to prove. But his leadership has thus far proven effective enough to bring buyers back into the stock.