SKT - Sky Network Television

[Mysterion]

If we are exceptionally lucky they will return a total of $90M between a buyback, special dividend and dividend.

That should still leave them $60M which is heaps.

It just seems so far fetched that they would have $150,000,000 sitting in a bank account doing nothing and then spend all this time and effort by writing a "winter newsletter" blabbering on about all this sh*t nobody even cares about and then when it actually comes to anything about a cash return they say something like confirming the best options, as of they don't even really know what the fu*ck they're talking about. Seriously, what the fu*ck does that mean? Why would you need to confirm the option? You're not buying fu*cking Mediaworks anymore, so what's the hold up, why the need to make everybody fu*cking wait, it's been ages already, why give a whole bunch of excuses and other bull sh*t?

I mean j**** c*****, if I was CEO I would release a statement like this in capital letters the day after Mediaworks acquisition was terminated:

SKY TO PAY OUT MASSIVE CASH HOARD

I mean seriously, if I had all these annoying retail investors emailing and calling me everyday AND I had all this cash just lying around on the balance sheet, I would release something to shut them all up and not drop hints that I was about to do the exact opposite.

To me it seems like there isn't as much cash on the balance sheet as the average investor thinks as there were likely lots of one off costs during the last half and other costs are coming due over the next year and what cash that's left is saved for Mediaworks 2.0 or some other venture to try and get revenue back up, therefore most of the cash is already tied up and used.

I'm thinking it would be dividend + $30m distribution or something absolute max.

No way is it going to be north of $50m. Certainly not when inflation and costs are going through the roof.

Maybe I'm wrong - but no news is bad news and there's no actual news of any cash return. The newsletter only said dividends and a cash return is an option. That's pretty much the baseline here.

I mean, $90m is almost a quarter of the market cap. To think they're going to give out this much cash and say "surprise, here's all the money we've been holding just for you!" - just lol.

[Mysterion]

Just got an email from Sky Nation...

" Our customers are at the heart of everything we do at Sky and we're looking for a few of our awesome customers to brighten up our Annual Report.

If this is something you'd like to take part in, please complete our short survey and tell us a bit about your household and what you most love to watch on Sky. Those selected will be given a $500 Prezzy Card for their time. The shoot will take place on Saturday 30 July 2022 in an Auckland home with Sky's creative partner HeyYou."

Looking to pad out the Annual Report with some extra fluff.

We are even paying for a bloody photo shoot!!

F*** this, just give me my divvy and let me go.

mistaTea living room.

[mistaTea]

It just seems so far fetched that they would have $150,000,000 sitting in a bank account doing nothing and then spend all this time and effort by writing a "winter newsletter" blabbering on about all this sh*t nobody even cares about and then when it actually comes to anything about a cash return they say something like confirming the best options, as of they don't even really know what the fu*ck they're talking about. Seriously, what the fu*ck does that mean? Why would you need to confirm the option? You're not buying fu*cking Mediaworks anymore, so what's the hold up, why the need to make everybody fu*cking wait, it's been ages already, why give a whole bunch of excuses and other bull sh*t?

I mean j**** c*****, if I was CEO I would release a statement like this in capital letters the day after Mediaworks acquisition was terminated:

SKY TO PAY OUT MASSIVE CASH HOARD

I mean seriously, if I had all these annoying retail investors emailing and calling me everyday AND I had all this cash just lying around on the balance sheet, I would release something to shut them all up and not drop hints that I was about to do the exact opposite.

To me it seems like there isn't as much cash on the balance sheet as the average investor thinks as there were likely lots of one off costs during the last half and other costs are coming due over the next year and what cash that's left is saved for Mediaworks 2.0 or some other venture to try and get revenue back up, therefore most of the cash is already tied up and used.

I'm thinking it would be dividend + $30m distribution or something absolute max.

No way is it going to be north of $50m. Certainly not when inflation and costs are going through the roof.

Maybe I'm wrong - but no news is bad news and there's no actual news of any cash return. The newsletter only said dividends and a cash return is an option. That's pretty much the baseline here.

I mean, $90m is almost a quarter of the market cap. To think they're going to give out this much cash and say "surprise, here's all the money we've been holding just for you!" - just lol.

$150M cash assumption was based on HY cash balance + property sale + assumption that sky produced ~$2M-$3M FCF a month for the second half of the year (a much lower rate to what they produced in the first half).

The numbers were supported by what they put out for guidance too - and they have not reneged on the guidance.

So we shall have to wait and see what the actual numbers are... but there should be a lot of cash on the books.

Even if they produced $0 FCF in the second half they should still have around $130M cash in the bank.

As to why they keep stalling and taking so long to share a plan for returning cash?

Well I have some expletive-laden thoughts on the matter, but I will leave it to other shareholders to make up their minds as to why this should be the case.

Your mate PK (Piss Kopf) will be "waiting and seeing" until sky is bankrupt.

[Mysterion]

$150M cash assumption was based on HY cash balance + property sale + assumption that sky produced ~$2M-$3M FCF a month for the second half of the year (a much lower rate to what they produced in the first half).

The numbers were supported by what they put out for guidance too - and they have not reneged on the guidance.

So we shall have to wait and see what the actual numbers are... but there should be a lot of cash on the books.

Even if they produced $0 FCF in the second half they should still have around $130M cash in the bank.

As to why they keep stalling and taking so long to share a plan for returning cash?

Well I have some expletive-laden thoughts on the matter, but I will leave it to other shareholders to make up their minds as to why this should be the case.

Your mate PK (Piss Kopf) will be "waiting and seeing" until sky is bankrupt.

I guess so but there's cash on hand and then there is cash for cash return. Two different things bro.

But yeah, they should have $100m at least, who ends up getting this we'll just have to wait and see.

Will it be investors or will Cam Wallace get his Xmas bonus!!


Remember they wrote this LAST DECEMBER!!



Bro, they hired a huge team of lawyers, accountants and money men!!!

Probably invoiced Sky a sh*t load too!!!

Nothing but cricket sounds!!

[mistaTea]

I guess so but there's cash on hand and then there is cash for cash return. Two different things bro.

But yeah, they should have $100m at least, who ends up getting this we'll just have to wait and see.

Will it be investors or will Cam Wallace get his Xmas bonus!!


Remember they wrote this LAST DECEMBER!!



Bro, they hired a huge team of lawyers, accountants and money men!!!

Probably invoiced Sky a sh*t load too!!!

Nothing but cricket sounds!!

Yeah, according to sky you have to pay an army of lawyers and accountants millions of dollars to tell you to do a buyback.

J**** C*****.

It's just too awful to watch now.

[mistaTea]

The only 'good reason' for a delay in capital return is if they announce a takeover offer soon.

We would all be really chuffed with that.

But these guys don't seem to be able to bring themselves to put the For Sale sign out...even though it is the best option for shareholders (the people that are supposedly front of mind in all their decision making processes).

[Plata]

Supposedly sky paid ~100 million a year to have the rugby rights
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/rugby-sky-tvs-deal-for-all-blacks-and-domestic-rugby-rights-worth-500m-report/6CXNBW2S67MWRTTO2DWDBOZJ3A/

Sky sport is 35 bucks a month, so in theory they need ~240,000 sky sport customers to pay the cost of that. There was 545,000 sky box customers as of the half year report, seems like a pretty high % of them need to have sky sport for that deal to make sense and that's just for the rugby.

[mistaTea]

Supposedly sky paid ~100 million a year to have the rugby rights
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/rugby-sky-tvs-deal-for-all-blacks-and-domestic-rugby-rights-worth-500m-report/6CXNBW2S67MWRTTO2DWDBOZJ3A/

Sky sport is 35 bucks a month, so in theory they need ~240,000 sky sport customers to pay the cost of that. There was 545,000 sky box customers as of the half year report, seems like a pretty high % of them need to have sky sport for that deal to make sense and that's just for the rugby.

Yes, I believe Martin Stewart got punked.

He also gave 5% of Sky's equity to...sweeten the deal.

Oh yes, The Board of Directors and successive management have really looked after shareholders very well over the last 5 years...

[Plata]

Well a lot has been said about how losing the rugby is the end of it all, but what if it was actually a good thing? Sure many people might totally cancel sky if it lost the rugby, but that has to be a hell of a lot of people to equal 100 million in lost revenue.
Or what if sky got different terms, eg non exclusive, delayed coverage etc.

[mistaTea]

Well a lot has been said about how losing the rugby is the end of it all, but what if it was actually a good thing? Sure many people might totally cancel sky if it lost the rugby, but that has to be a hell of a lot of people to equal 100 million in lost revenue.
Or what if sky got different terms, eg non exclusive, delayed coverage etc.

Yes, sky HAVE to be prepared to let rugby go.

If they aren't prepared to let it go then NZR have them over a barrel because they will keep paying way over the odds to hang into the rights.

Obviously we want to keep NZR if we can - but, to steal from Munger and tweak for your context - no content, no matter how wonderful it is...is worth an infinite price...

[mistaTea]

The 'something special' was some bad acting by Jeff Wilson followed by an unnecessary contribution to global warming...


Nice.

[Mysterion]

Yes, sky HAVE to be prepared to let rugby go.

After that performance might as well pull the plug and terminate the contract all together.

Get another Jones TV channel in there for the oldes!

[Mysterion]

The 'something special' was some bad acting by Jeff Wilson followed by an unnecessary contribution to global warming...
Nice.

Didn't see anything special.

I thought they were gonna show the amount of cash return on the big screen at half time!

[mistaTea]

Didn't see anything special.

I thought they were gonna show the amount of cash return on the big screen at half time!

$0 on the big screen would have been even worse than Jeff Wilson's attempt at acting mate

[Mysterion]

Sky admits customer service falling short

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/129270769/sky-admits-customer-service-falling-short-as-covid-and-tight-labour-market-bite

One customer said he resorted to driving to the company's Mt Wellington, Auckland, headquarters where he found other unhappy customers, before reception staff called security.