Well, I called the company again. The person tending to calls is Sam. In point form summary, this is what I learned in the conversation:
- Dakota is made up of only TWO employees (Sam and Robert Bateman). He justified it by saying "we don't need more than that, and this way we can keep our costs down". (In my mind: "You couldn't afford more if you wanted to.")
- He confirmed that fully-diluted, DAK has no working capital. In the same breath, he stated, "we also currently have no debt." (16M shares, no capital... you do the math!)
- There is a private placement for $1M in the works.
- March 31, 1997 quarterly financials will be put together and released "after Mr. Bateman returns from Toronto". (My thought: I won't hold my breath. Isn't it way past the timeframe to report it? Heck, the June 30, 1997 financials should be expected soon...)
- I asked about the phone number, and he reacted with surprise that it was not listed in the Calgary yellow or white pages. "It should be under Dakota," he claims. I just checked the most recent issue (Oct 1, 1996), and it isn't there... I see Dakota: Bar & Grill, Custom Builders, Design & Advertising, Designs, Hair Express, Painting Contractors... but not Dakota Resources. Cross-reference with the reverse phone-number directory yields nothing.
- Regarding the gravel deal, he said it is not a 100% deal yet. I asked what probability, and he gave me 80%.
- Whether or not the deal goes through, he said, they'll have to start looking at other projects. They are looking at more gold mining plays, and will explore the oil/gas resources as well. It will be in the NWT and other properties to be acquired. "With what money?" I asked. Gravel and PP. "What about Mexico -- Chihuahua and other properties mentioned in previous releases?" No intention to explore/work them (i.e., they are dead plays).
- Share value: he says "I would hold on" (naturally). "You will see it go up next week". (Yeah, probably, but then what's the use, and for how long? At least it's holding around 0.22 so far)
- Promotional activity? He says, "I think so -- you'll hear about us when the gravel deal is signed".
I think the term "promoterese" was coined in this forum. Do YOU feel confident with DAK? I'll let you judge from what I've ascertained...
Best of luck,
Ben. |
