Good morning everyone.

We had a pretty nice and eventful start to 2023. A company I have been a long-term bull on announced a large dividend program. Oil stocks keep going up. And tech continues to collapse. 2023 will be a wild year and we are only six days in.

Yesterday I ran a screener for the activist stock monitor. I scrounged through dozens of freshly minted 13D filings and have a few interesting ideas that might make sense to do additional research on.

Remember, the goal of 2023 is to find off the beaten path investment opportunities. So that means scrounging through thousands of filings, peeling back hundreds of financials and putting in a ton of work. Running these actionable screeners will help provide an initial research list for us all to dig into.

Now before we get into the activist monitor, first a word from today’s sponsor…

The Startup Bringing A $1 Trillion Industry Into The 21st Century

Landlines, fax machines, pen + paper. It sounds like the 1970s but it’s how the $1 trillion trucking supply chain is operating right now, making it ripe for disruption.

And one company is giving investors the unique opportunity to capitalize on inflation-defying alternative assets while they innovate the vital supply chain economy.

The problems with today’s trucking supply chain:

Companies can’t track their shipments and drivers don't know when (or if) they’ll get paid
Truckers lose 29 billion miles of potential revenue per year from driving without cargo
Rolodex-flipping brokers charge shippers up to 50% on top of shipping costs

The solution: LaneAxis.

Their blockchain- and AI-powered platform connects companies that need freight shipped directly to the truckers that will haul it. Plus, they handle everything from insurance to payment for just a 1% fee.

You can help bring this vital industry into the 21st century when you become a LaneAxis shareholder today.

The minimum investment is $499.80.

Invest here.

Activist Screener

There were a handful of 13Ds filed over the past couple of weeks. Most of the names were CEOs adding to their position. One was a Chinese filer that I would just avoid. There was an interesting filer on a FinTech company trading at $0.20 and another filer who sent a letter to the board of the directors of a $4 million dollar company. One interesting filing was from a CEO who recently passed away and his shares were transferred into a trust. And one from an institutional investor who takes large positions in debt and equity securities.

Let’s dig in…

I won’t go through all of these as some of the filings are pointless and/or invested in companies I would never invest in. But the following names are the ones that looked most interesting to me.

QuoteMedia (QMCI): A nano-cap with only a share price of $0.20. The company has developed financial content tools including stock quotes, charts, analytics, news, filings, fundamentals and investor relations. The balance sheet is pretty clean and there is only a preferred stock, which is pretty rare for a nano-cap. Revenues are growing rapidly (15% this quarter) and the company is profitable too. What is interesting here is the filer acquired 6 million shares in late December and runs a FinTech startup. Here is his LinkedIn profile and also Tweet he threw out of an interview he was in. It looks like he is building a clearing and custody business for US financial markets and the acquisition of QuoteMedia shares could be strategic. The market cap is only $20 million so this name could get pretty interesting.
VirenetX Holdings (VHC): I don’t this name well but the filer said they acquired the shares because they think the name is undervalued. The market cap is $108 million and they have $159 million of cash and investment securities on the balance sheet with zero debt, resulting in a negative $50 million enterprise value. They are burning $5 million per quarter so you are essentially investing in a startup. Might be worth digging into to see what the plans are for the business and if they can do something with the cash.
Innovative Solutions & Support (ISSC): The filer is the late CEO’s trust who recently passed away. After the CEO passed away his shares were converted into a Trust, which subsequently had to file a 13D for regulation purposes. There is a new CEO now but the late CEO owned 20% of the company. A strategic buyer could come in and shake up some things at this company. The business looks pretty strong. The balance sheet is strong with $17 million of cash and zero debt. Market cap is $140 million and the company generated $7.2 million of operating income for the fiscal year. This might be a good one to dig into.
Neptune Wellness Solutions (NEPT): This might be one of the most interesting names. The acquirer bought 600,000 shares for an aggregate purchase price of $3 million, implying an average cost basis of $5 bucks per share. The company now has a $0.48 share price and a market cap of only $5.6 million. The filer, Shohaib Kassam Sumar, filed a strongly written letter expressing his frustrations with the company and the CEO who is unwilling to speak to him. The company looks like a dud to me. They were a former cannabis company and listed their assets for sale and sold them (price not disclosed). Burning like $15 million per quarter with only $1.3 million of cash and $14.6 million of debt. There is $22.9 million of payables and $4.9 million of accounts receivables. It appears like they can’t pay their bills. They are projecting positive EBITDA by 2025, which seems pretty meaningless. I think there are better things to put your money in, but might be worth looking at incase this investor stirs up some trouble.

That is it for this week on the activist monitor. Monday we will get back to the insider buying tracker. Also, I’ll have another writeup on an interesting little company whose share price has collapsed over the weekend. A famous investor recently took a stake in the name and I don’t think many investors have realized this. Keep an eye out for the note.

Disclaimer: The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided in this page. All statements and expressions herein are the sole opinion of the author or paid advertiser.

Alpha Letter is a publisher of financial information, not an investment advisor. We do not provide personalized or individualized investment advice or information that is tailored to the needs of any particular recipient.

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THIS WEBSITE IS NOT AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS INVESTMENT ADVICE, AND DOES NOT PURPORT TO BE AND DOES NOT EXPRESS ANY OPINION AS TO THE PRICE AT WHICH THE SECURITIES OF ANY COMPANY MAY TRADE AT ANY TIME. THE INFORMATION AND OPINIONS PROVIDED HEREIN SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS SPECIFIC ADVICE ON THE MERITS OF ANY INVESTMENT DECISION. INVESTORS SHOULD MAKE THEIR OWN INVESTIGATION AND DECISIONS REGARDING THE PROSPECTS OF ANY COMPANY DISCUSSED HEREIN BASED ON SUCH INVESTORS’ OWN REVIEW OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION AND SHOULD NOT RELY ON THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN.

No statement or expression of opinion, or any other matter herein, directly or indirectly, is an offer or the solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities or financial instruments mentioned.

Any projections, market outlooks or estimates herein are forward looking statements and are inherently unreliable. They are based upon certain assumptions and should not be construed to be indicative of the actual events that will occur. Other events that were not taken into account may occur and may significantly affect the returns or performance of the securities discussed herein. The information provided herein is based on matters as they exist as of the date of preparation and not as of any future date, and the publisher undertakes no obligation to correct, update or revise the information in this document or to otherwise provide any additional material.

The publisher, its affiliates, and clients of the a publisher or its affiliates may currently have long or short positions in the securities of the companies mentioned herein, or may have such a position in the future (and therefore may profit from fluctuations in the trading price of the securities). To the extent such persons do have such positions, there is no guarantee that such persons will maintain such positions.

Neither the publisher nor any of its affiliates accepts any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss howsoever arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of the information contained herein.

By using the Site or any affiliated social media account, you are indicating your consent and agreement to this disclaimer and our terms of use. Unauthorized reproduction of this newsletter or its contents by photocopy, facsimile or any other means is illegal and punishable by law.

For Full Terms of Use Click HERE. For the Privacy Policy Click HERE.

alphaletter.co (“Alpha”) is a website owned and operated by Substack. Alpha is paid fees by the companies that make investment offerings on this website. Be aware that payment of these fees may put Alpha in a conflict of interest with the investor. By accessing this website or any page thereof, you agree to be bound by the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, in effect at the time you access this website or any page thereof. The Terms of Use and Privacy Policy may be amended from time to time. Nothing on this website shall constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or subscribe for, any securities to any person in any jurisdiction where such an offer or solicitation is against the law or to anyone to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation. Alpha is not an underwriter, broker-dealer, Title III crowdfunding portal or a valuation service and does not engage in any activities requiring any such registration. Alpha does not provide advice on investments or structure transactions. Offerings made under Regulation A under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") are available to U.S. investors who are “accredited investors” as defined by Rule 501 of Regulation D under the Securities Act well as non-accredited investors, who are subject to certain investment limitations as set forth in Regulation A under the Securities Act. In order to invest in Regulation A offerings, investors may be asked to fill out a certification and provide necessary documentation as proof of your income and/or net worth to verify that you are qualified to invest in offerings posted on this website. All securities listed on this site are being offered by, and all information included on this site is the responsibility of, the applicable issuer of such securities. Alpha does not verify the adequacy, accuracy or completeness of any information. Neither Alpha nor any of its officers, directors, agents and employees makes any warranty, express or implied, of any kind whatsoever related to the adequacy, accuracy, valuations of securities or completeness of any information on this site or the use of information on this site. Neither Alpha nor any of its directors, officers, employees, representatives, affiliates or agents shall have any liability whatsoever arising from any error or incompleteness of fact, or lack of care in the preparation of, any of the materials posted on this website. Investing in securities, especially those issued by start-up companies, involves substantial risk. investors should be able to bear the loss of their entire investment and should make their own determination of whether or not to make any investment based on their own independent evaluation and analysis

Grit Alpha

FinTech Company Takes Major Position in…