Pubcos Have Ripped Heart out of Industry

Yes what I think, but no, not what I have said in so many words. The Morning Advertiser, a prominent trade paper says so though the vehicle of a spoof blog, written by the fictitious "Sir Shannon Alberry."

"Sir Shannon" says this "So how have the owners of the major pub companies behaved? Doing a bit of research I have noted that the directors of the main pubcos have sold between them about £50m of shares between 2000 and 2006. The share prices are now a fraction of their former levels — both of the main pubcos shares are more than 90% off their peak. Surely given the protestations as to the robustness of their model — now would be a great time for them to be snapping up the shares. But no — not a single purchase. Indeed in recent times the two leading lights have exercised Long Term Investment Plans and taken even more money out of their companies.*

On the basis that actions speak louder than words — they are telling us that the pub model is indeed dead, that both companies are going bust, and they are getting all they can out before the ships sink."

I guess this must be what the MA believes, despite the vehicle they choose to say so. They may well be right. The PubCo model is creaking at the seams.

*More detail and the original article here