Kelvin Hartnall

Smacking Referendum – Online Poll!

Kelvin Hartnall — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 11:02:57 +0000

I recently received my voting paper for the citizen’s referendum. The question posed in the referendum annoyed me and has moved me to write this blog post. The referendum is in result to an amendment to the law in 2007 that has been dubbed the ‘Anti-Smacking Law’. The law was put into place to try [...]

Insider Trading?

Kelvin Hartnall — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 07:04:56 +0000

I recently read Darren Rickard’s thoughts on pre-announcement trading of SKC. It is always difficult to know whether a share-price rise prior to an announcement is due to focus on that particular equity or other sentiment factors, or whether it is due to insider trading.

Toughen Up – Michael Hill

Kelvin Hartnall — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 07:07:53 +0000

I’ve just finished reading Michael Hill’s recently released book ‘Toughen Up’, which I really enjoyed. Michael Hill is the founder of the Michael Hill Jewellery chain which is a publically listed company on the NZSX. I had two motivations in reading his auto-biography. First, I have a share-holding in Michael Hill International (MHI), so I took a lot of interest in Michael Hill’s business philosophy.

Xero’s New UK Managing Director

Kelvin Hartnall — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:16:19 +0000

Xero announced today the appointment of a new managing director for the UK operation. Reading through the announcement I reflected on a couple of things that have continued to impress me with Xero. One has been their clear vision and their ability to communicate that vision simply to employees, small businesses, accountants, banks, and other stakeholders.

A Brand New Person

Kelvin Hartnall — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:22:12 +0000

I have been very quiet on the blog front: there have been no posts on my blog for over a month. Four weeks ago to this day, our son Oliver was born. He is our first child and we’re finding parenthood to be an amazing experience. It can be quite demanding at times, but the smiles make it all worthwhile.

Freightways SPP Oversubscribed

Kelvin Hartnall — Fri, 29 May 2009 05:41:45 +0000

Freightways recently raised $45,000,000 capital in a placement to institutions at a significant discount to the market price. They also offered non-institutional investors a Share Purchase Plan (SPP) at the same price, limited to an aggregate of $5,000,000. Each small investor was allowed to subscribe for a total of $12,500 worth of shares at the same placement price.

Fisher & Paykel Rights Issue Calculator

Kelvin Hartnall — Wed, 27 May 2009 09:45:10 +0000

Fisher & Paykel Appliances (FPA) have recently announced a capital raising involving both an issue of shares to a strategic partner (Haier) as well as a fully underwritten renounceable rights issue. When calculating the value of the right, it is important to note that there are three stages to the capital raising.

The 4-Hour Work Week

Kelvin Hartnall — Tue, 05 May 2009 23:30:24 +0000

I’ve just finished reading the ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’ by Tim Ferriss. Actually, I sped read it skipping over some of the typical hype that these popular books tend to have. Being very selective of what we read is actually one of Tim’s recommendations, so I’m sure he won’t be upset to learn that I didn’t feel the need to read his entire book.

Are we currently suffering a major supply-chain whiplash?

Kelvin Hartnall — Fri, 01 May 2009 22:14:41 +0000

There is a business concept called the Whiplash Effect. The concept is that the further back in the supply chain a company is, the greater the volatility in demand it experiences. This is due to the use of inventory by the members of a supply chain. As an illustrative example, consider a retailer of personal computers.

The Great Crash

Kelvin Hartnall — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:15:18 +0000

I’ve just finished reading the ‘The Great Crash of 1929’ by John Kenneth Galbraith. I discovered this book at our local book-store, and I was motivated to read it when I noted that it was written in 1954. Currently there are many books being promoted in book-stores that are attempting to explain the cause of the 1930s depression and trying to forecast the current recession.