Alan Kohler and James Kirby discussed management of both SGH and DSH on the Eureka Report yesterday. They were kind of lumping them together as letting shareholders down because they failed to communicate effectively. In reference to SGH, both thought the UK expansion had been a disaster - Kohler said it almost destroyed their business. Kirby stated that it it must have been a bad idea because "the market doesn't lie".
What I took away from this is conformation that there are still a lot of negative perceptions around SGH among "reputable" media commentators, that are very loose with the facts. Take Stephen Long's ABC article that SGH could go broke. Just outrageous. It goes to show that a lot of business journalism is just plain sloppy...it is easier to get your facts from the shorter-fuelled rumourtrage mill than from your own research.
In the discussion. Kohler stated that he lost quite a lot of money in SGH. He looked burnt (and a bit disheveled) and perhaps his negativity towards SGH is understandable. But Kirby's "the market doesn't lie" comment was just plain stupid. I guess he's an "efficient market hypothesis" guy. The shorters must love him. Every time they push the price down, he thinks the company is getting worse.
My takeout - there is no meaningful comparison of DSH and SGH management unless you are a sloppy journalist in search of a headline.
SGH Price at posting:
$1.19 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
