The analyst at MST has done a good job on the marketing of PNC....

The analyst at MST has done a good job on the marketing of PNC. The analogy with the banks showing that debt collectors businesses is accounted for in much the same way as the banks are was a good illustration. I note that the marketing approach for both CCP and PNC is now an emphasis on the fact that they are in the business of helping clients regain their financial stability and improving their credit rating. It seems almost a reversal of what the businesses are essentially doing and that is debt collecting from delinquent debtors who have a range of reasons for not paying and an even broader range of attitudes towards resolving the issue. The Hayne commission has forced debt collectors to take the soft approach of selling the idea to the debtor that it is in their best interests to pay the debt on acceptable terms and regain a positive credit rating and offering payment arrangements similar to what amounts to a personal loan with interest on terms similar to the original debt. In PNCs case I do not think that they have had to make any severe changes to the original "customer-centric" methodologies they have always employed - this has always been their mantra so liquidation ratios should remain similar to past years. CCP are now spruiking similar strategy so the competition will begin to equalise - the big difference between the two companies being cash flow and surplus cash available to improve momentum with increasing PDP purchases. CCP clearly have the advantage and the volume. However as a small holder I do see that PNC is currently undervalued and the SP should not be at the discount to NTA that it is. There must be some value in its potential to gain some momentum from managements ability to pay more attention to rebuilding the PDP portfolio and sharpening cost reductions now that the finance debacle is out of the way.