Penny Perfect President
DEAR SHAREHOLDERS: A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
Symbol: PTHR NASD BB Industry: Mining Subject: Panther Update
Contact: Margie Adelman 561/998-4888
Dear Shareholders:
Things have been busy at Panther Resources. We've had some ups and downs, some disappointments and some achievements but we are still strongly in the game. The last year has been a trial for everyone at the Company, and especially our shareholders.
1998 has certainly been a tumultuous time for mining companies no matter their size. In fact, many mining companies are feeling the prolonged drastic effect of this year by making dramatic changes in their mineral property holdings and their administrative expenses. The industry has been fraught with many layoffs and mine closures with more still pending. It has been a year of abysmal returns for the shareholders of most mining companies. Even mining companies with cash in the bank are reluctant to devote capital to advance their properties.
The reality of this year of chaos is that the concept of continual change is here to stay. What was "hot" yesterday or today, will not necessarily remain so. Investors however are reluctant to make changes until they see strong signs of potential growth. Certainly, it has been difficult to attract venture capital when the "big chips" are continually reaching new highs. Notwithstanding the competition with the "greats", there are indications now that investors may be ready to turn their attentions elsewhere. Of course, we are hoping that investment capital will see the benefits of investing in silver at the bottom of the market. There are indications prompting that connection. Silver could not get a better backer than Mr. Warren Buffet, one of the most revered investors of the twentieth century. He certainly surprised the commodities markets in February 1998 when he revealed he had spent $860 million buying up to 129.7 million ounces of silver. That amounts to 20% of the world's annual silver production. Is this an isolated incident or an indication that there is inherent long term value in this metal?
Increasingly, corporate value resides in things you cannot see or measure, such as information and relationships. In many financial dealings today, value is being assessed today by focussing on the potential for future returns. This is very evident when you look at the market capitalization of many Internet stocks. The potential for increased future flow of cash is seen to be the best indication for potential upswings in market price and capitalization. As well, nebulous things such as entrepreneurial fortitude and commitment are increasingly becoming key indications of the intangible value indicative of future abilities. Investor expectations are now predicated on the adaptability of management to overcome the unknown rather than their ability to manage today. Present day valuations are now being based on the uncertain future rather than historical performances.
Companies are recognizing a definite shift from strategies that rely on accurate prediction and long-term planning to build management teams with flexibility and fast reflexes. Future abilities to create value for shareholders are far more important than the present day cost of building that value. No longer are balance sheets indicative of future success. They do not portray elusive trends either upward or downward nor do they illustrate the nefarious talents for networking inherent in the corporate structure. Certainly balance sheet analysis did not predict the fall of the mining industry. Nor does the income statement depict the true health of the future organization as there is no category present for depicting our most enduring assets such as knowledge, talent and experience.
Enterprises are learning that they must quickly adapt to their changing corporate environment as well as to changes in the global economies of the world in which they operate. While small companies are thought to be quick, agile and fast changing, they are also limited by their resources and often are at the mercy of the investment community during their growth phases. At Panther Resources, we recognized that the way to add value to our enterprise was by being unified around a purpose and being capable of paying attention to the details of our most important relationships. Clearly in the short term our market capitalization has suffered dramatically, but we believe our corporate development has soared. A year ago, we were actively involved in the Indonesian mining scene and were at the mercy of the integrity of a few industry players. Now, we are in the rarefied position of having a mineral property with the potential for huge returns longer term in a country with more stability.
So when does the shareholder start to benefit from our corporate strengths? For an astute investor, the momentum of change could be the single most important calculation when evaluating a company. A change from a short-term market assessment of value to a mind set that allows for a longer-term growth strategy will engender shareholder support immediately. We must remember that asset ownership itself, bestows little credit for long term gains in the market, it's what the company does with the assets that counts. Put assets in motion and you create living value. Our goal is to achieve a steady increase in capital inflow by developing the resources of our asset. Our own capital will then provide the impetus for faster corporate growth. In fact, the faster the capital works, the less you need of it. In Panther's case, a little capital provides huge long-term value far exceeding the capital input necessary.
Our present day focus on capital injection will eventually shift to attention capture and use. Companies will need to become like celebrities capturing and commanding attention by their amazing growth potential and their unique positioning in the marketplace. It will be imperative for investors to become agile in their strategies and think about intangible value if they hope to participate in the huge rises in stock prices. Relatively ordinary companies may in fact have an extraordinary resource that propels them into the stratosphere. Time is the ultimate scarce resource for investors since it will be virtually impossible to efficiently monitor all of the potential high flyers. Investors will need to become their own soothsayers and detect "buy" signals based on their own intuition and research. No longer will this territory be solely the realm of the "financial experts". How many of the real great investments have they missed? Have they changed the approach they use to evaluate potential gainers? Investors certainly have many choices today, they can choose to have managed money or they can manage their own money, after all who makes it in the first place?
At this late stage, Panther is not going to be distracted by short-term naysayers or surprised by the fickleness of the market. We have positioned the company with a product that has a potentially huge market. The La Verde silver project in Mexico has been developed strategically albeit rather slowly, but certainly with total justification given the state of the mining industry. Our stock price has been both a victim of the lack of confidence afforded the mining sector and undermined by the total lack of confidence investors have for mining stocks in general. For the remainder of 1998 and all of 1999, we are actively seeking to increase our shareholder base. As a commitment to our shareholders, when our silver production escalates over the next 12 months, we will have the capacity to pay dividends to our stockholders either in silver certificates or cash depending on our circumstances at the time. By providing an innovative alternative such as a silver dividend, we believe our shareholders will be afforded an opportunity to participate in one of the best investments available today. Panther is uniquely positioned to take advantage of being the underdog since we have an asset with the capability to generate increased revenues over time. In addition, as a further commitment to our shareholders and as our revenues increase, Panther will eventually set aside 20% of net earnings for a stock buy-back program.
Our mandate at the offices of Panther is simply this: NO EXCUSES. Our goal is to enrich shareholders and although it will take some time, we are sticking with our game plan and concentrating on the big picture.
All of us at Panther Resources wish to thank every shareholder for their patience and support during this year of chaos.
Sincerely,
Penny Perfect President
I would like to hear from you, our shareholders. If you have any questions or concerns please email me directly using the form below. Don't forget to enter your email address so I can respond to you. - Penny
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