Update, 3:53pm, 7/5/05: The stock has given up its ill-gotten gains now, falling to $0.431 for the first time today. The Bid is $0.431 while the Ask, at $0.45, is sticking with its story. Volume is 2,640,183 shares.
Update, 3:41pm, 7/5/05: Volume is more restrained now, standing at 2,599,013 shares, while debate goes back and forth about what the ERHC denial of a buy-out rumor means. Some note that buy-out rumors are always denied prior to a formal offer, and others attributing the story to desperate attempts by insiders to get a few more cents for the shares after the stock's dramatic decline. Our own take is that if there hasn't been a buy-out offer, there ought to be and probably will be one soon. Meanwhile, the price is $0.45, the Bid, as the Bid remains stuck at $0.455 20 minutes before the close.
Update, 2:24pm, 7/5/05: With the buy-out rumor ostensibly knocked down, vigorous trading continues and volume has reached 2.4 million shares. The price is at the opening $0.45, the Bid, and the Ask is $0.455. Lots of talk on RB about the identity of the ERHC "spokeswoman," as most investors had thought the woman who answers the phone was the company's receptionist, a Miss Barker, who reportedly called stockhocker an "asshole." She was right about that, anyway!
UPDATE, 12:47pm, 7/5/05: Dow Jones is reporting that an ERHC Energy spokeswoman denies any buyout offer is in place:
ERHC Energy Denies Buyout Rumor
5 Jul 2005 12:27 ET DJ MARKET TALK: Oil Co
[Dow Jones] ERHC Energy (ERHE), a Houston-based independent company that holds rights to prospective oil blocks in the Nigerian-Sao Tomean Joint Development Zone, denies reports in Upstream magazine that it is considering an offer by an unnamed US firm to purchase a controlling stake in ERHC. "There's absolutely nothing to that story," an ERHC spokeswoman said. ERHC shares on the OTC up 3.5c at $0.455. (norval.scott@dowjones.com)
Update, 12:28pm, 7/5/05: Volume is moving again, now to 1,784,692, and the price is higher at the Bid, $0.46, with the Ask at $0.465.
Update, 11:11am, 7/5/05: I am beginning to think there may be a trading halt, as no shares have traded in better than 20 minutes. The price is unchanged.
Update, 10:53am, 7/5/05: Volume has slowed to 1,304,114 as investors await some confirmation of the news from UpstreamOnline, and the price, Bid and Ask are unchanged at $0.455 and $0.452 x $0.455.
By the way, I did contact editors at the New York Times business ection, the Associated Press, Reuters and Dow Jones, but I am not expecting any coverage.
Update, 10:38am, 7/5/05: The price is $0.455, the Ask, as volume hits 1,207,214 and the Bid slips to $0.452. The selling into this volume could well indicate that the buy-out story is suspect, encouraging new people buy in as insiders sell. In any case, as usual, the trading makes no sense.
Update, 9:39am, 7/5/05: The price is $0.47, the Ask, an 11 percent gain and up five cents from Friday's close, with the Bid at $0.465. Volume is 304,500 shares. We opened at $0.45.
Update, 8:08am 7/5/05: ERHE shares are set to open at $0.42, the Ask, with the Bid still lower at $0.415. The key to price today is whether or not enough investors have contacted Reuters, Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal and other financial news organzizations like the AP and Bloomberg News to get the story of the buy-out reported by Upstream into wide circulation.
Otherwise, any price improvement will be met with the aggressive selling that will take us down in price again today. As a great man once said, "All that is required for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."
11 comments:
Joe,
In your opinion, if ERHE was to take the offer of a buyout what would that mean to us as investors? Being in my 20's i'm in a very small amount of cash in this and anything to jump start my portfolio would be awsome. Thanks.
It's really hard to say. As I've often said. I think the company is worth $6 a share, but I think the insiders will probably grab all the value from their restricted shares in private party deals. In that case, we may benefit very little - as little as $1 or $2 a share. There is also the danger that the Caymans Island holder of Sir Emeka Offor's 306,000,000 shares would ber the sole beneficiary. However, if we get a decent offer and get paid in shares of Noble Energy (whom I think is the prospective buyer, not Pioneer), for instance, we might do quite well as that company's price improves. Yet, if everything is conducted as forthrightly as Sir Offor has conducted himself in the past, this could be a very straight, non-controversial deal in which ERHC investors benefit mightily. There are just so many variables it is hard to answer your question with any degree of accuracy.
If trading is halted, everything goes to 0, bids and asks.
Thanks for the info, trader.
Actually, all the bids and asks disappear from the level2 screen. The brokerage computer detects it as $0, I guess. My guess only.
I have a little weiner and I like to smack my wife with it!
Walldog
Tue Jul 05, 02:22:00 PM EDT
Who is on on crack? the reporter or erhc people.
Joe i would rather have you turn off the comments section than to read the stuff that a$$ Holes is typing If he had any guts he would sign his own name..But we all know cowards will not..So to you Mr. Coward...Hide in your little hole we are working on a way of finding you..and we will..
I know who it is. At appropriate timing he (not she) will be exposed.
Alot of stocks that I own have funds involved with them that operate out of the Cayman Islands. The US Govt should shut them down. I dont trust them. While there at it they should shut down all of the hedge funds. They are going to scare people out of the stock market with their rampant manipulation.
:O)
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