MicrostockGroup
Agency Based Discussion => Shutterstock.com => Topic started by: Mantis on June 03, 2020, 14:58
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I’m wondering if there is more to this whole Shutterstock debacle, such as if they might be positioning themselves for better valuation to be sold or merged. I have been involved in two mergers in my career and our main goal was to make the financials look good for a minimum of the past three years and I’d say five years for larger companies. That sets the valuation to maximize selling price.
I only bring this up because I this smells like something much bigger than just instant gratification.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/ (https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/)
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Seems so, make the bride pretty, at our expense. Expereianced in my career two merger of larger companies, with fired employees. So seems like a long therm business plan. I need to search now also for a new business model, its really serious, for many of us.
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As someone else already pointed out, the new CEO has tons of stock options that only vest if he meets target goals, hence, why they are now robbing you lot so the company can increase profit and the CEO will have millions of dollars of options vest and get a great deal of money. CEOs being paid in stock options based upon meeting metrics is pretty common practice. In this instance, it is to your detriment.
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I may have this incorrect. Correct me if so. Wasn't IStock at on time owned by Bill Gates and he sold it to Getty ?? Maybe Amazon or Apple want to buy SS. They both have lots of cash on hand and SS would fit in their portfolo. Both are in the Movie industry and a Stock company makes sense..
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You could be onto something. Dropping rates then selling the company has happened before.
Makes the books look good and old management takes all the flak while new management ducks it and gets the rewards.
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I may have this incorrect. Correct me if so. Wasn't IStock at on time owned by Bill Gates and he sold it to Getty ?? Maybe Amazon or Apple want to buy SS. They both have lots of cash on hand and SS would fit in their portfolo. Both are in the Movie industry and a Stock company makes sense..
It was Bruce Livingstone (Istock) who "sold out" to Getty Images. Bill Gates owned Corbis for years and sold that to Visual China Group who is also in bed with Getty Images.
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Thanks, about Bill Gates...you are correct...
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I’m wondering if there is more to this whole Shutterstock debacle, such as if they might be positioning themselves for better valuation to be sold or merged. I have been involved in two mergers in my career and our main goal was to make the financials look good for a minimum of the past three years and I’d say five years for larger companies. That sets the valuation to maximize selling price.
I only bring this up because I this smells like something much bigger than just instant gratification.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/ (https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/)
Good point.
I also worked for a long established company that was bought because it was under valued. The new much bigger company, started cutting costs, cutting agents and moved production. After they had all the numbers up and after a huge profit, they sold that company off as division.
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I’m wondering if there is more to this whole Shutterstock debacle, such as if they might be positioning themselves for better valuation to be sold or merged. I have been involved in two mergers in my career and our main goal was to make the financials look good for a minimum of the past three years and I’d say five years for larger companies. That sets the valuation to maximize selling price.
I only bring this up because I this smells like something much bigger than just instant gratification.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/ (https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/dking/2016/06/13/preparing-for-the-sale-of-your-company/amp/)
idk. They more than doubled the dividend though. With so much insider ownership it looks more like they want to live on that 326m ...
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I have seen this this morning.
Is it true?
Is it a fake?
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Shutterstock/Istock merger to "compete" with Adobe? We are doomed I tell you. Or it may be that they are seeing a massive slump ahead with Covid. I pretty sure we don't know the full story.
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I have seen this this morning.
Is it true?
Is it a fake?
It's true he probably needed to buy a new guitar for his collection >:(
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Shutterstock/Istock merger to "compete" with Adobe? We are doomed I tell you. Or it may be that they are seeing a massive slump ahead with Covid. I pretty sure we don't know the full story.
Getty hasn't got a bean to its name its more likely to be Visual China Group
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I have seen this this morning.
Is it true?
Is it a fake?
True, but absolutely tiny amount of his holdings in the company. Don't let that stop you letting people know the major share holder is selling off shares though.
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Shutterstock/Istock merger to "compete" with Adobe? We are doomed I tell you. Or it may be that they are seeing a massive slump ahead with Covid. I pretty sure we don't know the full story.
Getty hasn't got a bean to its name its more likely to be Visual China Group
Last time I looked which is a while back SS did have a lot of money sitting in the bank...they could maybe finance Getty's debt. In the world of investment/banking all sorts of bizarre things seem possible.
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Shutterstock/Istock merger to "compete" with Adobe? We are doomed I tell you. Or it may be that they are seeing a massive slump ahead with Covid. I pretty sure we don't know the full story.
Getty hasn't got a bean to its name its more likely to be Visual China Group
Last time I looked which is a while back SS did have a lot of money sitting in the bank...they could maybe finance Getty's debt. In the world of investment/banking all sorts of bizarre things seem possible.
Last report had $300 million in funds and zero debt.
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Shutterstock/Istock merger to "compete" with Adobe? We are doomed I tell you. Or it may be that they are seeing a massive slump ahead with Covid. I pretty sure we don't know the full story.
Getty hasn't got a bean to its name its more likely to be Visual China Group
Last time I looked which is a while back SS did have a lot of money sitting in the bank...they could maybe finance Getty's debt. In the world of investment/banking all sorts of bizarre things seem possible.
They do not want to buy market share with their money they want to do it with yours. The only reason they would be interested in getty is for their libraries of exclusive content and I doubt that would be worth the debt they have. Besides the Getty family have just done a refinancing of the business to buy it back.
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I would agree. Look at Jarrod Yahes, new CFO, and how many companies he's been at that were acquired.
and he was at https://zetaglobal.com/about/ before shutterstock
John Sculley ex CEO at Apple.
Connecting the dots.
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more like 46573 shares over 3 days
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1549346/000117911020006941/xslF345X03/edgar.xml (https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1549346/000117911020006941/xslF345X03/edgar.xml)
but yes and small amount compared to the total amount he owns
Let's point out the his quarterly dividend is 2,755,658.18
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more like 46573 shares over 3 days
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1549346/000117911020006941/xslF345X03/edgar.xml (https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1549346/000117911020006941/xslF345X03/edgar.xml)
but yes and small amount compared to the total amount he owns
Let's point out the his quarterly dividend is 2,755,658.18
It’s never enough
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I hadn't realised that even if it is a small part of his holdings it is still the most he's ever sold. I wonder if he is trying to get out as quick as he can without spooking the market.
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I hadn't realised that even if it is a small part of his holdings it is still the most he's ever sold. I wonder if he is trying to get out as quick as he can without spooking the market.
who is buying on the other end? slowly acquire
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I hadn't realised that even if it is a small part of his holdings it is still the most he's ever sold. I wonder if he is trying to get out as quick as he can without spooking the market.
who is buying on the other end? slowly acquire
It makes sense. In Q4 they're going to report huge growth and RPD. In January it'll be massively better again. They'll spike high.
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I have tracked the numbers of images that they have for sale since yesterday and overall they are down 62000 on a day, it will be interesting to see what happens when they pay everyone, as I imagine we will see a big spike in Portfolio's being pulled.
The talent is walking and I expect that to accelerate as the month goes on.
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I hadn't realised that even if it is a small part of his holdings it is still the most he's ever sold. I wonder if he is trying to get out as quick as he can without spooking the market.
who is buying on the other end? slowly acquire
It makes sense. In Q4 they're going to report huge growth and RPD. In January it'll be massively better again. They'll spike high.
This is my point. Make historical data look strong.
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Well, since 2012 the insiders have never bought shares, only sold them. (except oringer who once bought in 2015 and is now selling)
https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/SSTK/insider-trades/ (https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/SSTK/insider-trades/)
The timing to pretty up the bride (or moulding corps) to look great for end of the year and the first quarter of 2021 is very plausible.
The CEO options are until April 2021, right?
By the way the professional way to announce themselves to the shareholders is for a CEO to invest in company stock on the day he is signed on. Show that he has trust in his own vision.
So, yes it does look like they are looking for a very juicy exit.
Question: will the investor community not realize the rise in profits is just based on taking it from the producers?
Who as graphic artists and designers are also the largest buyer group??
Will they be that stupid?
When Adobe is the more interesting company and just has to sign up all the disgruntled designer/buyers/producers?
The real investors that move hundred of millions of dollars are not idiots.
But maybe they are preparing the business for a private buy out, or just a share swap with Oringer?
Then the institutional investor doesn‘t matter. The small, private investors never matter.
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„GRAND PLAN“
Drastically cut payout to producers, make sure there is a really strong extra boost in profit end of year and early 2021.
Go on an aggressive sales Blitz in countries like China and India, or maybe just everywhere with ultra, ultra cheap subscription packages.
The lowest, the cheapest, the never bevor seen nanostock packages.
CREATE MASSIVE GROWTH!!
Show amazingly magical increase in profits and super duper rise in signing new subscribers. Razzle Dazzle potential buyers with spectacular presentation in plush office in the Empire State Building.
How am I doing so far??
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I have tracked the numbers of images that they have for sale since yesterday and overall they are down 62000 on a day, it will be interesting to see what happens when they pay everyone, as I imagine we will see a big spike in Portfolio's being pulled.
The talent is walking and I expect that to accelerate as the month goes on.
and 62000 a day is more like a bare minimum of 250,000 a day they are falling behind competitors in reality when you think that there were normally a couple of hundred thousand added each day!!
I say bare minimum because from posts on their forum and here people who were exclusively putting work on SS are now pulling ports or freezing uploads and additionally adding their whole portfolios to DT and AS.
The disparity is going to get real big real quick.
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I would agree. Look at Jarrod Yahes, new CFO, and how many companies he's been at that were acquired.
and he was at https://zetaglobal.com/about/ before shutterstock
John Sculley ex CEO at Apple.
Connecting the dots.
Really interesting, thank you.
But who is going to be the buyer? They must have a clear target, or should I say mark?
Why would anyone invest in them instead of Adobe?
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I would agree. Look at Jarrod Yahes, new CFO, and how many companies he's been at that were acquired.
and he was at https://zetaglobal.com/about/ before shutterstock
John Sculley ex CEO at Apple.
Connecting the dots.
Really interesting, thank you.
But who is going to be the buyer? They must have a clear target, or should I say mark?
Why would anyone invest in them instead of Adobe?
Adobe is a huge company with stock images being a tiny part of what they do. I would think it will be a company the size of Abobe doing the buying, they smell blood in the water with SS's sliding share price over the last 5 years
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So it must be a large software or media company that can benefit by adding stock images to existing products.
Do you think they could be targeting companies like Microsoft? So that people can easily add stock photos into office.
But don‘t they already have plug ins for that?
What about Visual China. They already have a deal with Getty, but SS has a much larger collection in Video. And they have a very good app and interface.
The last time they went shopping, they bought content. Maybe this time they want a slick plattform and great apps?
Hm, who else would like to add stock, apps and a creative producer community to their product line??
The number of potential companies must be very small.
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Maybe Amazon? They seem to want to have a toe in every conceivable field.
Or Google maybe? Integrated into Docs?
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Maybe Amazon? They seem to want to have a toe in every conceivable field.
Or Google maybe? Integrated into Docs?
I think amazon too. Lots of other factors point to them.
One thing for sure. Just like with all the previous agencies that sold to bigger agencies over the past 3 decades. Contributors won't share in the profits from the sale.
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Hm, but couldn‘t Amazon and google not just source images from agencies in bulk at a verx,very cheap price and then resell them?
This way they would not have to deal with the producer community. We are not grateful, we rebell.
They could even source content fron several agencies and keep their options open.
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More comments added to the Seeking Alpha article
https://seekingalpha.com/news/3579529-shutterstock-goes-ex-dividend-tomorrow
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More comments added to the Seeking Alpha article
https://seekingalpha.com/news/3579529-shutterstock-goes-ex-dividend-tomorrow
This is really interesting in the comments section, thanks for posting it.