From yesterday's Daily Mirror
CITY SLICKERS: DAN GOOD SHOW
DIALOG SHARES ROCKET AT LAST
AT LAST, the sun is shining on Dan Wagner's Dialog Corporation, with the
share price heading to 200p.
This is a company just about every Slicker reader seems to have shares in on
our recommendation - and for several months, it has made us look like a
couple of losers.
But it seems the corner has been turned by Dialog, which provides online
business information.
Since the turn of the century, its shares have risen from 91p (the price we
first tipped them at nearly a year ago!) to close yesterday at a decent 11op
in a near 10 per cent surge. Two months ago, they had fallen to just over
60p.
The company has struggled with pounds 150 million of repayments to bankers
for months, so what's going on? Dan was on a plane as we went to press so he
couldn't talk, but our pals in the City say good news about Dialog's debt is
imminent.
After months of tense talks, a restructuring of the debt is thought to be in
place, releasing more cash to expand the business and generate more profits.
Details are expected to be announced early next week. That's just the start.
The brilliant Fujitsu deal Dan signed last year is about to reap rich
rewards, with huge licence payments coming to Dialog from the Japanese
electronics giant. There's also talk of a licensing deal with Netscape, the
Internet software company.
And the mega-merger of AOL and Time Warner this week has made Dialog's
Internet content appear more attractive to the City.
All of this explains why broker ABN Amro is about to publish a very strong
"buy" note on the company.
We have, of course, learned by our mistakes not to make wild predictions
about Dialog. But Slicker maintains that this is the world's top on-line
information provider, and its management are among the best in the world.
The shares are worth 200p as we've always said. But we now feel confident
they might actually get there. |
