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Post by radgray68 on Jul 12, 2019 22:37:42 GMT -5
The problem with our stock is, in the minds of Wall Street, Mannkind has absolutely NO credibility. When Sanofi dropped us, they stated clearly to the whole world that Afrezza didn't work. Do any of you disagree? Follow my train of thought for a minute, please.
Bless their hearts, Matt and Hakan, even with their proven love and loyalty for Al Mann, had no business trying to run this company after Al died. They never even made a legitimate attempt because they were so far out of their depths. They ended up being very expensive wastes of time as far as MNKD the company and the stock are concerned. However, the blame for their failure, I'm sorry to say, rests with Al and the way he ran his organization.
Al was a great inventor and self-made billionaire with an enormous amount intelligence and talent. Nobody can deny him that. However, when it came to the day-to-day operation of a business, by Al's own admission, he got bored. It was not his favorite thing to do. His MO was to get a new company going up to a point, then hand it off or sell it. Al Mann, for all his strengths, did not manage the cash flow of Mannkind as tight as it should have been.....PERIOD. Matt used to admit in CC's that he sounded like a broken record always guiding for $10-12 million a month cash burn. I ask, What did we get for that $10 million a month? No pipeline advancement at all. It was all about Afrezza, supposedly. But, they weren't running clinical trials, they weren't maintaining a sales force, they did not pursue ANYTHING else from the Technosphere platform. I'm getting mad as I type this because even after Sanofi dropped us, we continued to hemorrhage cash at the same ridiculous rate as before. For WHAT!!!?
Now, FINALLY we have a young, hungry CEO who is committed to taking our technology to the next level, actually proving its worth. Mike Castagna has Mannkind running like a well-oiled machine. He's made the deep cuts needed to reduce cash burn, he's got the balance sheet heading in the right direction, he has built up a sales force from the ground up, and he has run some crucial, small focused trials that made the effin FDA allow the sales people to actually talk about the attributes of Afrezza instead of just saying it's non-inferior. Now, thanks to Mike, we have a great partner in UTHR and we can actually talk about a pipeline. We've paid down the huge, predatory, deerfield debt and are about to get the rights to our IP back. Additionally, we're increasing sales respectably quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year. All of this, he has accomplished with very low cash on hand, a huge debt load AND a broken reputation in the industry.
Under Mike's leadership, we have approval for the first time outside the U.S. Launch is soon. As I understand it, in lieu of upfront money, our partner in India is paying for the phase 3 trial needed for approval in that country. I imagine that's what Australia will look like too. These are very creative solutions to our money problems that, while they don't line our coffers with cash, continue to advance our business tremendously in the long run. Blue Hale, a forgotten asset, is now going to help get us into connected care which is the future of healthcare. Our huge, underused Danbury factory is being transformed into an asset that will make money on several fronts when it's through, not just waiting for Afrezza to ramp up. If you listen to the conference calls as much as I do you will get all the transparency he can give. The answers are there, just listen carefully.
This is longer than I thought, but my point is: Mike is our guy. He's doing great. He had everything working against him from the start. Wall Street won't get back in until we reach profitability. Most firms can't buy under $5, let alone $2. Shorts know these speed bumps and are playing them relentlessly. A change in leadership at this juncture would be the end of us. Thanks to Mike, we are finally getting some of Mannkind's credibility back. Al would be proud. He deserves some time. Thanks for listening.
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Post by sellhighdrinklow on Jul 12, 2019 22:53:33 GMT -5
👍🤞👍
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Post by buyitonsale on Jul 13, 2019 0:09:25 GMT -5
In the next 11 weeks of Q3 we will see the following:
1. Deerfield loan final payment that frees up MNKD assets for more favorable financing options or partnerships.
2. UT decision on the second molecule license option.
MNKD, it’s CEO and Afrezza are here to stay!
GLTAL
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Post by theshiv on Jul 13, 2019 0:56:27 GMT -5
I still support Mike at this point. He took over this company when many thought we were left for dead. MNKD is still here, not in a perfect form, but the pieces are slowly being put together. This has been a big test of patience for many of us. I still think he can get this done. It will take more time.
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Post by hellodolly on Jul 13, 2019 6:40:26 GMT -5
The problem with our stock is, in the minds of Wall Street, Mannkind has absolutely NO credibility. When Sanofi dropped us, they stated clearly to the whole world that Afrezza didn't work. Do any of you disagree? Follow my train of thought for a minute, please. Bless their hearts, Matt and Hakan, even with their proven love and loyalty for Al Mann, had no business trying to run this company after Al died. They never even made a legitimate attempt because they were so far out of their depths. They ended up being very expensive wastes of time as far as MNKD the company and the stock are concerned. However, the blame for their failure, I'm sorry to say, rests with Al and the way he ran his organization. Al was a great inventor and self-made billionaire with an enormous amount intelligence and talent. Nobody can deny him that. However, when it came to the day-to-day operation of a business, by Al's own admission, he got bored. It was not his favorite thing to do. His MO was to get a new company going up to a point, then hand it off or sell it. Al Mann, for all his strengths, did not manage the cash flow of Mannkind as tight as it should have been.....PERIOD. Matt used to admit in CC's that he sounded like a broken record always guiding for $10-12 million a month cash burn. I ask, What did we get for that $10 million a month? No pipeline advancement at all. It was all about Afrezza, supposedly. But, they weren't running clinical trials, they weren't maintaining a sales force, they did not pursue ANYTHING else from the Technosphere platform. I'm getting mad as I type this because even after Sanofi dropped us, we continued to hemorrhage cash at the same ridiculous rate as before. For WHAT!!!? Now, FINALLY we have a young, hungry CEO who is committed to taking our technology to the next level, actually proving its worth. Mike Castagna has Mannkind running like a well-oiled machine. He's made the deep cuts needed to reduce cash burn, he's got the balance sheet heading in the right direction, he has built up a sales force from the ground up, and he has run some crucial, small focused trials that made the effin FDA allow the sales people to actually talk about the attributes of Afrezza instead of just saying it's non-inferior. Now, thanks to Mike, we have a great partner in UTHR and we can actually talk about a pipeline. We've paid down the huge, predatory, deerfield debt and are about to get the rights to our IP back. Additionally, we're increasing sales respectably quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year. All of this, he has accomplished with very low cash on hand, a huge debt load AND a broken reputation in the industry. Under Mike's leadership, we have approval for the first time outside the U.S. Launch is soon. As I understand it, in lieu of upfront money, our partner in India is paying for the phase 3 trial needed for approval in that country. I imagine that's what Australia will look like too. These are very creative solutions to our money problems that, while they don't line our coffers with cash, continue to advance our business tremendously in the long run. Blue Hale, a forgotten asset, is now going to help get us into connected care which is the future of healthcare. Our huge, underused Danbury factory is being transformed into an asset that will make money on several fronts when it's through, not just waiting for Afrezza to ramp up. If you listen to the conference calls as much as I do you will get all the transparency he can give. The answers are there, just listen carefully. This is longer than I thought, but my point is: Mike is our guy. He's doing great. He had everything working against him from the start. Wall Street won't get back in until we reach profitability. Most firms can't buy under $5, let alone $2. Shorts know these speed bumps and are playing them relentlessly. A change in leadership at this juncture would be the end of us. Thanks to Mike, we are finally getting some of Mannkind's credibility back. Al would be proud. He deserves some time. Thanks for listening. And then you have those who are trying to harpoon that path to profitability because they think better. Let's take those who are spearheading the activism movement, for example. I still have no idea what their credentials are, their past achievements or their plans. The only thing I can take away from the activist position is they feel slighted that MNKD took their pay (as voted on by shareholders in the affirmative) and made a gut wrenching decision (as it always is) to dilute in December, which should not be a surprise considering cash is necessary to sustain MNKD, given their position. Well, in the real world that I live in and have been investing in over the last 30 years, dilution is inevitable, pay raises are certain and without either of them, companies are left on the vine to die or whither away. There are nefarious actions by those who have been feeding on the emotions of long time shareholders, that feel they have been abandoned, who can come in and save MNKD, IMHO. They want to throw jabs and punches at the man at the top because he's pulling the strings. I get it. But, they are blindly following others who are tossing out scraps of hope and placing their judgement into their motives which remain unknown. I'm not doing it. I'm standing with Mike C., in his corner because he is in the ring, throwing the punches taking the beating for me. The match isn't over, we're only in round 3. I feel Mike is getting ready to load up and throw a haymaker. |
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Post by rtmd on Jul 13, 2019 6:51:19 GMT -5
In the next 11 weeks of Q3 we will see the following: 1. Deerfield loan final payment that frees up MNKD assets for more favorable financing options or partnerships. 2. UT decision on the second molecule license option. MNKD, it’s CEO and Afrezza are here to stay! GLTAL If paying off Deerfield makes for more favorable options, why didn't they do it after receiving the UTHR payment or after the December secondary? Indeed, why not now rather than the end of August? |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2019 7:27:58 GMT -5
There are many reasons why Mike didn't payoff Deerfield earlier.
Deerfield Debt might not have been callable
Mike is working on a total ReCapitalization Plan
Mike wanted to conserve cash
Interest rates were higher compared to now.
Could be many reasons.
What we know now is that MNKD requested a 60 day extension and Deerfield accepted providing MNKD places the money due in escrow. So DF is protected. It's a safe assumption that MNKD is working on a NEW DEAL that will hopefully REFINANCE ALL Existing DEBT and provide enough working capital for the next 2 years on favorable terms. The TOXIC Financing days are over for Mannkind. For all we know MNKD could be negotiating with Deerfield on a new deal.
Someone said on ST that Mike is in a position to shop a deal and whom ever gives him the best deal he will take it. But the key is that he can SHOP FOR A GOOD DEAL. That's because of the hard work he has done over the last 2 years by restructuring the company and building an infrastructure. MNKD is in a much better shape than they were 6 years ago when "THEY" (Not Michael Castagna) did their deal. Deerfield knew MNKD was in trouble and offered them a horrendous deal for MNKD but a sweetheart (HIGH RISK) deal for Deerfield.
Here we are today....
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Post by sayhey24 on Jul 13, 2019 7:40:54 GMT -5
The one thing Mike has not done is to put an organization together to sell a significant amount of afrezza knowing it will take years to get the SOC changes needed to make afrezza the go to medication for diabetes.
Hopefully Mike now understands Endos are not his friend. Hopefully Mike now understands he must leverage technology to expose the short-comings of the medical community on their current approaches to diabetes treatment. Hopefully now he also knows until you start hitting them in the pocket book and start taking their patients away they are not going to prescribe afrezza. The simple truth is money talks.
IMO, Mike is working a deal with a properly funded organization that MNKD can partner with to pull this off Big League. I sure hope I am right and based on past discussions with Mike he is well aware of numerous companies already in this space or wanting to get into this space.
What Mike and MNKD and all MNKD investors have going for them is only afrezza can affect BG in real time with near zero side effects. CGMs don't lie and more and more people are using them every day. I am hoping for big news soon.
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Post by barnstormer on Jul 13, 2019 8:13:56 GMT -5
I for one am not ready to give Mike a pass. Much of what is said in previous posts is true in regards to some of the progress made toward sustaining MNKD as a going concern. One example is his pass on ADA. He told me once that ADA wasn't a good use of money, that it was attended by a lot of foreign doctors. Yet the STAT study was held for release at....ADA. He didn't have complete control over when the study was released, but the point is ADA is important even if you are a drug only approved in the US.Conferences like ADA are expensive, but attendance is a must. A company's abscence is construed as they "aren't a player". Thats why all of the other companies competing spend the money and make an apperance ("you must be present to win"). Another issue is the money spent airing a TV commercial that was poor at generating excitement about Afrezza. Mike called it award winning. I don't recall who the agency was that gave the award, but most of the posts I read on this board thought it was a sub par and I agree. Now we have a PR about a new capability at the Danbury plant. That could be exciting if we had a PR telling us about a new partner/customer, but we are still guessing. Then there is the mystery about the final DF payment. If Mike has a partner or new opportunity with up front cash then I could understand why the payment is being deferred until the deal is done. But there was nothing in the verbage to elude to that. Then there is the Indy car sponsorship. I am sure that was Garrett's idea because she had a previous sponsorhip with Connor Daly while at Lilly. I supported this because I have been around Indy Car for years and know how the advertising there works. I was shocked that Mike and Kendall weren't present for the race as it is great exposure and in Lilly's home town. At the awards banquet the night after the race Connor thanked all of his sponsors but one. Guess who. In a Tweet exchange with Connor he stated that he would be making several appearances with MNKD where up to a thousand PWD and healthcare professionals would be attending to talk about Afrezza. It appears that investment has been abandoned. Total lack of execution. So I will jump back on the Mike bandwagon when he demonstrates success in the main reason he was hired. Make Afrezza a success. He got a nice pay increase ahead of hitting his main objective, now lets see if he earns it.
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Post by apidistra on Jul 13, 2019 8:51:27 GMT -5
Compare condition of company before Mike and his team (it's not a one man band) to today. Compare also over selected chronological points over that time.
Quantitatively: Much better shape
Qualitatively: Much better shape
Slow, steady growth.
So many people go to the gym and want to look like Arnold in three months or even three years. I want strength and stamina trained over the longer term that really lasts. Even though I have no inside information, as a long term shareholder of a large position (certainly large to me at least, maybe not to you), I think that is what I see happening with MNKD.
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Post by sportsrancho on Jul 13, 2019 8:52:48 GMT -5
This is my feeling also... What we know now is that MNKD requested a 60 day extension and Deerfield accepted providing MNKD places the money due in escrow. So DF is protected. It's a safe assumption that MNKD is working on a NEW DEAL that will hopefully REFINANCE ALL Existing DEBT and provide enough working capital for the next 2 years on favorable terms. The TOXIC Financing days are over for Mannkind. For all we know MNKD could be negotiating with Deerfield on a new deal. Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/11357/why-mike-castagna-deserves-time#ixzz5tZ4ddg8RAnd my other “feeling” is Mike has a partnership in mind for EpiPen. As far as the activist movement, those movements are to bring about or “release shareholder value”, that’s about the stock price. It will be interesting to see which one of these things brings the stock up first:-) Or what the shorts are most afraid of. |
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Post by theshiv on Jul 13, 2019 9:56:21 GMT -5
This is my feeling also... What we know now is that MNKD requested a 60 day extension and Deerfield accepted providing MNKD places the money due in escrow. So DF is protected. It's a safe assumption that MNKD is working on a NEW DEAL that will hopefully REFINANCE ALL Existing DEBT and provide enough working capital for the next 2 years on favorable terms. The TOXIC Financing days are over for Mannkind. For all we know MNKD could be negotiating with Deerfield on a new deal. Read more: mnkd.proboards.com/thread/11357/why-mike-castagna-deserves-time#ixzz5tZ4ddg8RAnd my other “feeling” is Mike has a partnership in mind for EpiPen. As far as the activist movement, those movements are to bring about or “release shareholder value”, that’s about the stock price. It will be interesting to see which one of these things brings the stock up first:-) Or what the shorts are most afraid of. The so-called activist movement is only noise in my mind and I don't see how it can move the needle on MNKD. The actions of Mike and the board will always supersede any group trying to hammer the company into a particular direction. It may be well-intentioned, but I would be very surprised if this on-line activism will have any impact at all. It's very unconventional. |
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Post by hopingandwilling on Jul 13, 2019 10:38:11 GMT -5
Radgray,
Please allow me to issue a BS alert for your mistakes in the information that you posted. You stated---"He's made the deep cuts needed to reduce cash burn >"
In reality Castagna had the largest cash burn in the last for quarters in the 1stQ-2019 report. Basically, he has been spending money like a sailor on shore leave after a six months deployment with no shore time. If you must distort the very issue that is the problem with MNKD--lack of cash, it sort of makes your post worthless IMO!!! (:>)
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Post by wgreystone on Jul 13, 2019 10:43:16 GMT -5
Yes, MC sold a lot of stocks to pay down the debt. A big achievement that no one else can do it.
The UTHR deal is nice but really has limited valuation. The true treasure of this company is Afrezza. Until he figures out how to sell it...
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Post by stockwhisperer on Jul 13, 2019 10:58:01 GMT -5
Radgray68,
Very well said - thank you. Despite other opinions & contradictions that may follow, imho, there is an abundance of truth to this. No one & nothing is perfect. There is almost always room for examination & improvement. Is there a door that is really open to all ideas— a leader who is a team player w/ears that will truly listen and work toward SH value - the right people, IR & the BOD to be there when needed - processes & procedures in place to further drive quick results? These are some important factors to consider. I too appreciate what MC & his team has done to, IMO, prevent MNKD from falling off a cliff. I would prefer not to disrupt those in place, especially, MC. I do want SH value sooner rather than later. A lot happening - surely, a lot we do not know about or understand. I am waiting to see how things move forward - expecting clarity & good things.
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