Thanks for the post, nice to see a new name... Without being a prick, why would you still own shares in a company they believe has a rubbish product...? You must believe in its prospects then? that the SP will be higher in the future than it is today?
IMHO the company is tracking well on the export front, but I do agree it would be good to know what GNT fine wines are up to, what's the volume, what's the margin and what's the status for orders etc etc. Lack of info suggests they either aren't seeing strong traction, or, Lark knows they aren't the right partner... The webinar eluded that export partners for other jurisdictions were being discussed (does this mean negotiations underway - would not expect to see an announcement as this update was provided in a quarterly for GNT fine wines).... Doesn't mean that China isn't still up for grabs for another player.. Again no knows so who knows..
Putting all into perspective, before the Pontville acquisition (it was trading at $5 at time of raise and acquisition) export could not even commence until 2023 at the earliest as they didn't have the stock available. That is why the acquisition was strategically very good, done at a time when the Sp was running hot, gave the company another distillery (risk mgmt.), their own cooperage (and the only one in Tasmania), a lot of maturing whisky (no doubt this will be mostly just used for Symphony, and they will use what they have created for the higher value releases), and space for a new and larger distillery, and cellar door, broadening the scope of what Lark has to offer in Tasmania.... This is very much part of Bainbridge's early vision - Own Tasmanian Whisky - make sure that Lark is the most accessible Tasmanian Whisky through more, and better, cellar door experiences. They are achieving this (I am yet to head there and try it for myself) but have had some friends visit, and they were impressed by the experience. And threw down a few k on product while they were there! Great...
Off the back of the acquisition they started export in April 2022, yes it may have been a slow, or possibly a false start - we don't know for sure as nothing announced or confirmed one way or the other. But that is at least 12m ahead of schedule.
Only the big global awards competitions really matter - especially if next step for Lark is export... i.e. IWSC & World Whisky Awards.. Lark continues to feature reasonably well in these awards - yes they could always do better, but this is not for a lack of trying...
Do I agree that pricing needs to sharpen up - yes probably to drive volume for symphony and classic casks. But, this is a brand after all... And there are enough people out there that don't have a clue what they are drinking, and, they want a bottle of it in their cabinet because it is a talking point, or it makes them feel good, because they know that their mate knows what it is and how much it cost... Why does onw buy a Mercedes over a Landcruiser, its not a better car... Its status, its look at me (I am one of those Mercedes and Lark owning fools, why, because it makes me feel good in front of the world). Someone sees Hamish Blake guzzling a bottle of Lark while making his son a birthday cake on Instagram (a yearly occurrence), they want to be like that... Don't underestimate the power of the influencer...
In answering your question, has Lark lost its status not even close, +$20m away of sales away from having lost its appeal in fact... .
We should have quarterly out soon, so I guess the real truth is in that result.. So we will get an update on sales and margin, and hopefully commentary on export, CEO, and new distillery approvals would be good too...
I wonder how many more rants I can muster this week!
GLTAH. And that a run on some good quarterlies can give the holders who hate a chance to sell out
LRK Price at posting:
$2.02 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
(20min delay)