Ann: Investor Presentation (inc. trading update), page-4

I too held PMP up until shortly after the announcement of the merger with Hannan - i sold for the reasons i commented on here (https://hotcopper.com.au/threads/an...2997140/page-11?post_id=20217278#.WTJbXWh95PY), and i feel increasingly comfortable that it was the right decision to exit. No matter how successful they are at ripping out costs, the volumes just keep on falling and that's completely beyond their control.

Without wanting to hijack the PMP thread with discussion of other stocks, TPM seems to be very divisive among the broader investment community! I have heard/read almost everything from "Teoh walks on water and TPM is the best buy inside the ASX200", to "NBN and pricing competition will kill it, they can't do mobile, it's a strong sell" (i'm obviously using a bit of poetic licence here, but it is a stock that seems to really divide opinion). The very brief summary in my case is that: 1) i like investing alongside aligned management teams, 2) yes, the industry has a reputation for destroying value, but i think being a low cost anklebiter is a much better spot to start from than a high-cost quasi-government incumbent, and 3) my average purchase price (at a tad north of $6) was around an ~8x(F) EBITDA, so i felt as though i bought at a valuation that roughly reflected the inherent quality of the company. If TPM offends your sensibilities, you should see 3 or 4 of the other stocks i own!