Here's some info on Mr Ashley (from the recent proxy):
On August 12, 1996, the Company entered into a Consulting and Separation
Agreement with former president and chief executive officer Mr. Joseph Ashley,
whose employment with the Company terminated as of that date. Under the terms of
the agreement, Mr. Ashley is to provide two years of consulting services to the
Company, until August 11, 1998, in return for which he will be paid at an annual
rate of $107,500 (approximately 50% of his current gross salary at termination).
In addition, the Company agreed to pay Mr. Ashley for a period of up to eighteen
months after his termination the cost of any health insurance benefits which he
elects to continue for himself and his spouse. The stock option granted to Mr.
Ashley on January 26, 1995, to purchase 150,000 shares of ProCyte Common Stock
at $2.94 per share shall continue to vest and be exercisable during the term of
Mr. Ashley's consulting services to the Company. Mr. Ashley was not compensated
for his continuing service as the chairman of the Board of Directors in 1996,
nor is he eligible to receive a retainer fee as a director.
______
In other words he's the ex-CEO who they kept on as chairman and
consultant. Incidentally he's 69 years old. As of the date of the
proxy (March 97) he held some 420,000 shares (excluding 100,000
underwater options), which means he has about 300,000 left.
In summary, while it's always embarrassing for your chairman to
be slowly dumping his stock, I think this guy can best be characterised as an ex-insider, who may well be selling for personal
reasons or because he's mad at the way he's been treated. I don't
think it necessarily says much about the long-term prospects for
the company, and it explains the weakness in the stock.
I personally think this stock is a buy at these levels. I think
Graftcyte was a very clever idea, much easier to market than a
generalised wound-care product, and potentially nearly enough
on its own to get the company near break-even levels.
Peter Suzman
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