Agricore United Dividend Announcement

[bshaw2]

What a wonderful surprise to learn that the "loyal members" with Limited Voting Shares will get a wopping 7.5 cents / share. Kind of a slap in the face I think, considering that our MB Pool member equity was converted and then devalued to almost 1/2 of its true value. What makes the Prefered shares deserve a $1 dividend?

In my humble opinion, I think the AU should refund ALL member equity that was in the MB and AB Pool accounts at the time of the merger. I know several "oldtimers" that were counting on that equity for their retirement.

[wilagro]

Forget it. We got screwed real good and THEY, (the hired guns running things), new exactly what they were doing. I see the shares are now trading just a bit over the $6 mark. If they go down to $4 I would consider buying back some shares again. This would be 1/2 what we received when we got conned into participating in that assisted sales program.
If we have another year of drought like this one we won't have to worry about these things anyway as we will all be broke and so will the grain companies.

[wilagro]

Forget it. We got screwed real good and THEY, (the hired guns running things), knew exactly what they were doing. I see the shares are now trading just a bit over the $6 mark. If they go down to $4 I would consider buying back some shares again. This would be 1/2 what we received when we got conned into participating in that assisted sales program.
If we have another year of drought like this one we won't have to worry about these things anyway as we will all be broke and so will the grain companies.

[bshaw2]

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that our shares are worth only 1/2 or their original value as nearly 1/2 of the elevator assets, Heartland, CSP, etc have all been written off, torn down, or sold.
Just watch the next piece of wonderful news will be the bonuses that the AU executive will get this year for "Turning things around".

[carebear300]

As bad as things are for you shareholders, consider yourself lucky that you aren't the proud owners of Sask Wheat Pool shares. You talk about farmers getting screwed, this is the biggest farce that was ever perpetuated on an unsuspecting and trusting body of shareholders. The then CEO (forget his name right at the moment) should have been fired immediately for incompetence but was given in a big severence package instead. With that kind of logic it is no wonder the shares last week were worth less than one dollar. That is a far cry from 12 dollars a share at inception and a high of 24 dollars a share.

[bshaw2]

I e-mailed AU to find out what the difference was between a $1 Prefered Share and a 7.5 cent Common Limited Voting Share. Here is the reponse I got.

Your message has been passed on to me for reply. I provide the
following information:

1) The preferred shares that you refer to are shares that were issued
to UGG farmer members in 1993 (the year the Company became a publicly
traded company) in exchange for shares they had accumulated during the
years when UGG was a co-op. These preferred shares are mostly held by
farmers and retired farmers.

2) Currently, Agricore United has 1.1 million preferred shares
outstanding and 45.3 million common shares outstanding. The preferred
shares are non-voting. The common shares are voting. Farmers continue
to hold the largest block of common shares.

3) The holders of the preferred shares are entitled (and have been
since UGG went public) to a fixed annual dividend of $1.00 per share.
The holders are entitled to this dividend before any dividends are
declared and paid on common shares. (Note: This is the usual practice
in the business community. Dividends must be paid on preferred shares
before any are paid on common shares.) The merger agreement provided
for the continuation of the preferred shareholder class, including the
dividend payment.

4) As you correctly note, the Board of Directors has declared a
common share dividend of 7.5 cents per share. In prior years, the
common share dividend was 25 cents per share. The Board would have
preferred to maintain the dividend at 25 cents, however as I'm sure you
can appreciate, the effects of the 2001 and 2002 droughts demanded
fiscal prudence in the setting of the dividend rate. As you may know,
overall prairie grain production in 2002 is projected to be the lowest
since 1974.

[lornej]

It was obvious that the assited sales program was an intentional scheme to buy shares from cash-strapped farmers who believed that their favorite old co-op was working on their behalf -WRONG Many of us were dooped by this program - Some , however , set the program into file 13 and waited for the marketplace to pull the shares up to over $10 - about what they were worth as AWP reserves back in the good old days when we could only deem them as equity on the balnce sheet - and you know that equity plus $1.50 will still buy you a cup of java - A Bird in Hand .....

[rodbradshaw]

I hate to pour rain on your bitch session but you could have had SWP shares as Carebear 300 has. Basically if you look at your documents you are lucky that UGG accepted the merger or you might not have gotten anything as Agricore was basically insolvent. If anyone had purchased the company as happened to Dairy World (another poorly directed Western Canadian Co-op), you would have received nothing for your so called equity.
Hopefully next year will be better and share prices and dividends will increase.

[kslseed]

I know for sure, that my shares in AU are sold as soon as I find a level that is close to $10, I know that may take a while, but what thus "figures" at now AU pull is nearly criminal.

One more thing: I am supporting my local, smaller suppy companies with purchasing my inputs, rather then the AU mafia.

Just wonder, when AU will start to off load money making divisions like Sask Pool to our friend below the 49th (ADM etc.)

[henbent]

kslseed, Right on, I will be doing exactly the same thing as you have outlined. AU is being run by a group of senior executives that are lining their own pockets, and are arrogant or ignorant or both. I'll buy only what I am forced to buy from that company. It would cost them a lot of money to buy any of our grain in future!! Also their new high throughput terminals are to damn far away to be practicalat any rate.