Most investors read a company's news releases, but don't read between the lines to understand in which direction the company is heading. Too often, a company tries to say everything in the headline and the first paragraph. Why? Because they know, as we do, that most investors scan the headline, a few sentences and perhaps look at some drill intercepts or key technical data (which few really understand). Then, the investor looks at how the share price reacts to the news, rejoicing or complaining on a stock chat board. Often, key phrases or sentences are buried inside the release, sometimes near the bottom. These may give you a clue as to what is really happening with the company.
We pulled up some recent news releases of several uranium companies we have been following to help investors read between the lines. Only a keen, ruthless appraisal of each news release, or a series of their news releases, could give you an accurate interpretation of how well the company is doing. Hopefully, the guidance which follows may help you better understand what is really going with a company's plans.
Another company example is also hoping to mine uranium in Africa. Forsys Metals Corp (TSX: FSY) announced on May 28th a new "detailed drilling" program on the company's Valencia uranium deposit in Namibia (Africa). Closely spaced reverse circulation drilling will help add more "measured" resource to the company's feasibility study. Increasing the measured resource will make it easier for the company to raise the money to develop a uranium mine or sell its deposit to a major company. Sounds good, but a news article Forsys Metals posted on its website was of greater interest to us.
A major hurdle in further developing the low grade uranium deposits in Namibia is water. These projects are in a desert. You need water, lots of it, to mine. On May 26th, The Namibian newspaper ran a very encouraging article – good news not only for the Rossing mine, but also for Forsys Metals and UraMin (which also hopes to start mining uranium in Namibia). What was the news? At a breakfast meeting on water conservation and management hosted by the Namibia Economic Society (NES) on Wednesday, NamWater CEO Vaino Shivute, announced, "The desalination plant is back on the table. We are looking into it again how to restart it, look at the problems of the past and learn from that." With the water issue on its way to a possible resolution, we expect stronger interest in Namibia.
Sometimes, when there is a lack of news, one can learn to dig around and find a company can be doing quite well. In other instances, one can study the news releases and try piecing together where the company is heading. We hope this guidance helps you become a more sophisticated investor. We neither recommend stocks nor give buying and selling advice. As always, speculating on natural resource companies can be very risky and suitable only for certain investors. One should always check with their registered financial advisor about what is suitable or not for one's investment decisions.
James Finch contributes to StockInterview.com and other publications. Sign up now and get your free copy of our new book, "Investing in the Great Uranium Bull Market: A Practical Investor's Guide to Uranium Stocks." Just visit http://www.stockinterview.com for details.
