CSS - Clean Seas Seafood

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Well, yet another very disappointing spawning season for CSS.

Yesterday’s announcement confirms my suspicions that there has been no improvement on last years spawning, despite CSS claiming the contrary.

The facts speak for themselves, 160 @ 30gms. They were very careful not to mention length, why, because these fingerlings are only about 50mm-60mm in length and investors can relate to this. Up to now they have always used juvenile length as their guidelines for growth.
If this is the case, these fish were only spawned a 3-5 weeks ago which suggests that all of the fish spawned earlier are now dead.
It would appear that they are having great difficulty moving beyond this 50-60mm juvenile stage. It could be a number of reasons e.g. diet, tank size, disease, injury due to collision with tank walls etc.
The SBT project has come to a standstill from which it will not recover, in my view.

Another very important omission from the announcement was the status of the YTK business. Investors were informed in Feb that there was a 16% mortality of YTK in the sea pens and that they may abandon the YTK business all together and now, nothing , not a word. As this is material to the future of the business I would be asking the ASX to demand an update on the YTK operation ,if I were invested, as this is an unacceptable and glaring omission IMO.
This uncertainty is further compounded by the resignation of M.Sterhr as he was growout manager for the YTK operation. His removal suggests the outlook for YTK is not good.
Furthermore, his departure is further evidence of “rats deserting the sinking ship”.
I acknowledge that he will stick around as a non-executive director and provide consultancy services to CSS but this has more to do with picking at the carcas of CSS , when in folds , as some of the assets will fit very nicely into the Sterhr Group business and at a bargain price.
Consultants typically charge many thousands of dollars a day for their services. I would be watching very closely at the next financial report for additional charges and fees etc.

For those of you who still believe the CSS story be prepared to lose everything as I don’t believe it will survive to next season.




Disclosure – Not invested, opinion only and not based on any factual information, DYOR.

 

[Sdajii]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

In my opinion, CSS came to the point of inevitable death around two years ago (and I wasn't shy about saying so at the time). Now it's really coming apart at the seams. It's a shame it's not as easy to predict company success as decline! Good call on the resignations. The YTK must be in serious trouble, if they weren't we would have been told. With CSS you know that if something goes well you'll hear all about it, if it goes bad they'll spin the story into success, and if there is silence it is so bad they can't spin a positive story.

The silence on the YTK issue is not legal, and blatantly so. Sooner or later they'll have to talk, but in the mean time their silence surely just advertises their desperation. It is a strategy which can only help in the very short term and then hurt when they tell the story (unless they're being tricky and making everyone think it's disaster then surprising everyone with better than expected news so their mates can sell... seems unlikely and unlike them).

Amazing to see some people still talking CSS up. I can't tell if they're love struck or if it's management with aliases, but it's not sane or rational.

Amazing to see 11 extra 30g fish being called a success! A third of a kg of fish. Hooray! Seriously, one guy with a fishing rod can catch 11 fish in an afternoon

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

For those investors who would like a better understanding of the growth rates for BFT here is a link.
If you scroll down to figure 6 you will see the weight-length relationship of juvenile BFT.
The chart is hard to read in the very early stages but approx. 150m= 50gms and 200mm=100gms.

CSS are advising that their fish are 30gms so the fingerlings are about 80mm- 90mm by my calculation , not the 50-60mm reported in my earlier post.

I always try to keep my posts as accurate/honest as possible.


http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0021903


Disc - Not invested, opinion only.DYOR.

 

[nizora]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

In my opinion, CSS came to the point of inevitable death around two years ago (and I wasn't shy about saying so at the time). Now it's really coming apart at the seams. It's a shame it's not as easy to predict company success as decline!

Ah, what a sad story ! Another AAQ in the making!!! Should be a massive blow for Hagen Stehr ,who at one time claimed one day would make sharehoders a lot of money. And undoubtedly a massive disappoiment for many CSS shareholders who have been holding their faith in him.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

I am dumbfounded that there has been no update on the ASX. If I were invested I would be knocking down the doors of CSS and the ASX for an update on the following:

1. BFT Mortality Rate - They have 160 juveniles as of last report. They had 1500 in the previous report. It may well be that they have had more mortalities over the past few days...who knows! it is outrageous that the ASX allows them to report so irregularly. Oil / resource explorers have to report on at very regular intervals when drilling for oil/minerals as this is material to their business. The mortality rate of juvenile SBT is material to CSS's future, and yet, they only report when they choose allowing those close to the company to move first on any material changes.

2. YTK - I simply do not believe that the mortality of YTK stayed at 16% as reported in the previous announcement. It is inconceivable that , suddenly, they all stopped dying and recovered overnight.

3. Cash Burn - How much cash are they currently using to conduct operations.

4. Cash Balance - How much is left and how long do they expect this to last.

5. Frode Teigen - As a significant investor( > 5% ) his update to the market on the sale of his holdings was very late in being submitted to the ASX. I suspect he, and the institutions, are bailing out to un-informed retail investors who simply have no idea about the risk they are taking on.

As far as I am concerned CSS is trading on an un-informed basis at present which is a blatant disregard for the ASX rules and regulations. Having said that the ASX itself is equally to blame.

When this company folds there will be ample legal ammunition for disaffected investors in my opinion.

Notwithstanding the above, the recent price plummet on large volume should prompt an ASX please explain!


Disc - Not invested, Opinion only and not based on any factual information. DYOR.

 

[Sdajii]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

I entirely agree with a lot of that.

CSS has already been hit with a 'please explain' as to why they didn't report a *100%* mortality in that season's juvenile tuna. They simply responded by saying it wasn't price sensitive information! In this case I'd actually say it's fair enough that they don't report on tuna mortality as long as no more than a dozen or two had died and there hadn't been any particular thing which killed them and was going to be a continuing issue (disease, toxicity, an unknown issue).

No update on the YTK is beyond a joke at this stage. They should be getting their arses kicked to next week and back over that one. I very greatly doubt the situation is good. For years CSS has demonstrated how it deals with bad news - it stays quiet as long as possible and when it does talk it says as little as possible. If the situation was good they'd be shouting about it.

I very strongly suspect that they're being reluctant to put out any news because any update would have to include news about the YTK situation, which is not good, so they want to stay quiet.

Management jumping ship is a very, very bad sign at this time and further makes me think the YTK are in big trouble.

This has all the alarm bells and sirens and red warning lights flashing more vividly than I've seen in any company I've been watching.

As you say, investors would legally have a lot of reason to complain about things, but realistically, what are they going to do? Rely on the toothless regulators to say "Hey! You're naughty!" and CSS can respond with "Oh, we didn't do anything wrong and we're bankrupt anyway, sorry" and the regulators can say "Okay, fair enough"

I do feel sorry for those invested, but if you're still holding now you deserve what you get. Blind Freddy can see what's happening from here. I am finding the whole thing very interesting to watch.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Yes, at least we have our eyes wide open Sdajii.
It would appear we are about the only posters left on this forum, not sure if our opinions are being noticed by many CSS investors.

I noted a rise in volume/price yesterday. ASX may have to look back at this when they fold, there are a lot of XT and NXXT transfers between open trades......very suspicious in my view!

Where are the ASX in all of this?.........hopefully Chi-X will provide better regulatory governance as they compete against the ASX.....goodness knows....investors desperately need a competitor to the ASX who can represent shareholder interests!

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Forgot to include the usual in previous post:


Disc - Not invested, opinion only not based on any factual information. DYOR.

 

[Sdajii]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

That's a good point about investor protection, or lack thereof.

One of the reasons I find it interesting to watch an obvious train wreck of a company like this is to see how the regulators deal with the situation. When a company blatantly lies and illegally withholds information repeatedly over a period of years, you can see an extreme example of what we are supposed to be protected against. When nothing at all is done you see just how useless they are and how little protection we have.

In my first few months of investing/trading I was very naive and bought into companies, one in particular (STI), which made some huge claims which seemed unrealistic, but I foolishly put some weight on their claims because I figured it would be so incredibly illegal to say those things if they weren't true. Amusingly, I realised my mistake within a day or two, put in a desperate sell order, and a few hours later they put in another ridiculous announcement saying they expected to be able to cure swine flu, which caused a few minutes of frantic buying before a big crash! My order went through at a much higher price than I asked, and I made a big profit. I kept watching STI. The company ended up folding with at least one of the directors skipping the country and vanishing from the authorities

I don't think CSS is acting *quite* that illegally, but it's another fascinating case to watch. Just like STI, I'm boggled by some people still willing to buy in and defend the management which lies and deceives them while the company is clearly crumbling into the ground.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Too right Sdajii, I also wonder if this price spike relieves the pressure of a "please explain" from the ASX.....I certainly hope not!

I am sure they will do anything to avoid updating the market on the issues raised in my earlier post. I reckon they are working feverishly to find another "white knight" like Frode Teigen to prevent the inevitable......they've got no chance this time....I am amazed he jumped onboard last time!

Disc - Not invested, Opinion only not based of factual information. DYOR.

 

[Gringotts Bank]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Maybe salmon is the way to go?

I have noticed the TGR shop in Melbourne doing amazing business. Surely a good indicator. TGR chart has made its first higher low in a long long time.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Maybe salmon is the way to go?

I have noticed the TGR shop in Melbourne doing amazing business. Surely a good indicator. TGR chart has made its first higher low in a long long time.

Yes, I have been a long term holder of TGR. They are at the mercy of the high Australian dollar at present as they plan to export more of their product. They have a major presence in the domestic market but margins are being squeezed by woolies and coles.

As for CSS, salmon is a great product but I am not sure that CSS would be able to compete with the likes of TGR , Huon Salmon etc. who are very efficient producers and marketers.

CSS have been unable to grow their YTK business into a profitable entity, unlike Southern Star, so I doubt they would succeed with other products.

They needed success with SBT, I don't see any other options for them and a takeover is totally out of the question.
I am afraid it is all too late.......administration is the only possible scenario in my view.

Disc - Invested in TGR. Not invested in CSS. Opinion only not based on factual information.DYOR.

 

[Gringotts Bank]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Yeh the tinned Tassal stuff you buy at the supermarket has no taste or nutritional value.

But TGR definitely know how to run a shop/cafe. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see new ones popping up around major cities quite soon. A hungry domestic market might offset those AU$ concerns? Let the supermarket chains sell other brand's rubbishy tinned junk, I say.

 

[nizora]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

No update on the YTK is beyond a joke at this stage. They should be getting their arses kicked to next week and back over that one. I very greatly doubt the situation is good. For years CSS has demonstrated how it deals with bad news - it stays quiet as long as possible and when it does talk it says as little as possible. If the situation was good they'd be shouting about it.

I very strongly suspect that they're being reluctant to put out any news because any update would have to include news about the YTK situation, which is not good, so they want to stay quiet.
lot of that.
.

Undoubtedly they have to stay quiet as long as possible, what else could they do? As the news they have currently is all bad news !!! The coming report could be the one they have to report : Administration appointed???

 

[Sdajii]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

Undoubtedly they have to stay quiet as long as possible, what else could they do? As the news they have currently is all bad news !!! The coming report could be the one they have to report : Administration appointed???

Yep, very likely. If they put out an announcement now telling us what is going on it will likely throw the price down to very little and bring about a collapse sooner. No point going into administration sooner than they have to. They have a bit of money left and probably just want to keep paying staff (including themselves) for as long as possible.

We're now at the point where no update on the YTK problems is totally stupid and most likely the next announcement will be "Goodbye from CSS". If there's no announcement by first thing after the Easter break I'd just about bet money that the next announcement is either that they're in administration or it'll be something disastrous enough to kill them shortly after it's announced.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

I have no doubt the they will go into administration Sdajii, but I don’t think it will be after Easter and this is mainly because Ellis-flint is not stepping down until May 31st. He is too smart ( read – cunning ) to get caught as Chairman of a company that has collapsed. If he were to vacate earlier than this date, then all bets are off, it’s going under imminently and I would bail out at any price…..better to get something rather than zip!
Either way, post May 31st is my guess for administration. The cash will probably run out by Q4 but I don't think they will make it to Q4.

My guess is they are screwing down on expenditure big time to allow a bit more breathing space before the inevitable. As eluded too earlier, I would imagine they are working feverishly to find a new investor like FT as even the most star struck faithful retail investors will steer clear of the next Cap Raising unless there is a credible investor onboard. I am sure they will try to keep bleeding funds from investors right to the very end, just like WKL and AAQ did.

I don’t understand why investors , with their hard earned at stake , are not bombarding CSS and the ASX for an update on YTK. I can only surmise that the ASX haven’t acted because it hasn’t been brought to their attention by investors……incredible!


Disc – Not invested, Opinion only and not based on factual information. DYOR.

 

[nizora]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

18 April 2012
Outlook
Clean Seas expects FY2012 trading results to be consistent with previous forecasts, the
final findings of this Strategic Review may require the Company to consider writing down
the carrying value of specific Kingfish assets.
The Board confirms that it has sufficient cash reserves through to the end of the current
calendar year 2012.Importantly, the Strategic Review will allow the Board to adopt the optimal strategies for the future Tuna propagation and Kingfish grow out businesses. Accordingly, a further update will be provided to shareholders following the Company May 22nd Board meeting

Former Tassal CFO joins Clean Seas Board
Directors are pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Nick Burrows as an independent non executive Director of the Company effective immediately.

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

It is unacceptable that they have taken this long to update the market on both SBT and YTK mortalities. The market has traded on an uninformed basis for the past month or so in my view.

As to the announcement, don't be fooled by the cash reserves lasting to year end. They are selling down all of their remaining YTK stock before it dies. This has a false impression of cash flow and financial reserves. The fact remains, once these fish have been sold they will have nothing left of any value to sell. Additionally, they will be drawing down on remaining cash reserves.

The strategic review is nothing more than a delaying tactic, I am convinced it will end in tears for investors. Arno Bay is the wrong location to propagate SBT and they don't possess the necessary management skills or quality controls to grow a profitable YTK business.
I believe they will delist and enter receivership after the review.

4c a share may not seem like much to long suffering holders but zero will feel a lot worse.


Disc - not invested, opinion only not based on any factual information. DYOR.

 

[nizora]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

"tge oracle;698100] I am convinced it will end in tears for investors "


An interesting comparison : http://www.umamiseafood.com/news/umami-reports-second-quarter-results-fiscal-year-2012

 

[tge oracle]

Re: CSS - Clean Seas Tuna

I have to comment on the latest 4C as I note they sneaked it in after trade yesterday, a move typically made by a company in financial trouble. If you care to look back through their 4C releases in the past, they have always been made during ASX trading hours.

As to the 4C, it paints a damning picture, cash is running out fast. They are now trying to hold out hope by saying they are reviewing YTK to make it more profitable. They have had 7 long years to get YTK right and now expect investors to believe they can make it profitable, desperate measures to encourage investors to hang in there , in my view.
Interestingly, no mention of the SBT business......my guess is things are not going well their either. I wonder how many fingerlings are left.....if any!

Disc - not invested, opinion only , not based on any factual information. DYOR.