GeoEye Beams a 'Buy' Signal to Investors

The solution to improving the board comes in two forms. First, the board needs to look for possible directors with a commercial background and seek to bring them in as quickly as possible. The Chairman and CEO need to do a full review of GeoEye's current outside directors and their stock ownership.

I do not believe stock holdings are the same as the stock that someone has dug into his or her own pockets and purchased. The two are different as motivators and as predictors of future stock appreciation. There are several GeoEye outside directors whose stock holdings likely have only come through grants and options paid to them for their service -- the equivalent of found money. That's not enough "skin in the game," in my view. I would like to see each of GeoEye's outside directors purchase at least $500,000 in stock within the next six months.

I would not be a shareholder in this company if we didn't believe GeoEye had a bright future. I expect the clarification of GeoEye's earnings before the end of the month will be a major catalyst for the stock. It should be appropriately valued at $45 today. It will be worth much more upon successful launch of GeoEye 1 later in August.

If it takes some activism to help unlock some of this unrealized value, I am happy to oblige.

< Previous

1 2 3

Next >