Inside Christmas with the Canadian Crew

A quick rundown of cool "quick let's file it while nobody's looking" inside transactions over the Christmas period.

Here's top of the pops, Rusoro (RML.v): Makes you want to burst into the Cat Stevens oldie 'Father and Son', doesn't it?

Rusoro Mining Ltd. (RML)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 26/09	Dec 23/09	Agapov, Andre Vladimir	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	11 - Acquisition carried out privately	53,428,167
Dec 26/09	Dec 23/09	Agapov, Vladimir Pavlovich	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	11 - Disposition carried out privately	-53,428,167

Next up is Exeter Resources (XRC.to) (XRA) and CFO Cecil Bond had himself a wonderful Christmas time:

Exeter Resource Corporation (XRC)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 21/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-65,000	$7.960
Dec 24/09	Dec 18/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-81,000	$7.820
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-100,000	$7.650
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Acquisition in the public market	260,000	$1.200
Dec 24/09	Apr 12/05	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	00 - Opening Balance-Initial SEDI Report
Dec 24/09	Dec 16/09	Bond, Cecil Robert	Direct Ownership	Options	51 - Exercise of options	-260,000	$1.200

Moving on to MAG Silver (MAG.to)(MVG) and HEY WOW! WHAT A SURPRISE! It's another round of bare-faced shameless self service from the management crew:

MAG Silver Corp. (MAG)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 15/09	Rubenstein, Jonathan A.	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	7,715	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Harris, Jody Lynn	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	20,000	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Colterjohn, Richard Mark	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	7,774	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Carlson, Eric	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	6,602	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Megaw, Peter	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	8,203	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	White, Derek Christopher	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	14,971	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Neal, Gordon	Indirect Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	32,883	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	8,379	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	11,855	$6.320
Dec 23/09	Dec 15/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	34,761	$6.320

Now B2Gold (BTO.to) and the mysterious Robert Shaw at it again:

B2Gold Corp. (BTO)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 24/09	Dec 24/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-1,900	$1.220
Dec 24/09	Dec 24/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-18,100	$1.210
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-10,000	$1.150
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-30,000	$1.140
Dec 24/09	Dec 23/09	Shaw, Robert Peter	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-35,000	$1.110

And to wrap up, Avalon (AVL.to) and Robert Anderson just can't seem to take Jim Dines' advice about his own stock....way of the world, I suppose:

Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AVL)						As of December 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 27/09	Dec 22/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.670
Dec 27/09	Dec 21/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-5,000	$2.940
Dec 27/09	Dec 18/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.810
Dec 27/09	Dec 18/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-2,500	$2.810
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,700	$2.950
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-7,300	$2.940
Dec 27/09	Dec 16/09	Andersen, Robert James	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-5,000	$2.930

MAG Silver (MAG.to)(MVG)

Damn the hides of this opportunistic, self-centred management team. If it weren't for their managerial stupidity and greed this company would have added oodles more shareholder value in 2009.

MAG Silver Corp. (MAG)						As of December 8th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Dec 08/09	Dec 01/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,000	$7.180
Dec 08/09	Dec 01/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,000	$7.150
Dec 08/09	Dec 01/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,000	$7.150
Dec 08/09	Dec 01/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,000	$7.130
Dec 08/09	Dec 01/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-2,000	$7.100
Dec 08/09	Dec 02/09	Megaw, Peter	Indirect Ownership	Common Shares	47 - Disposition by gift	-38,200

But of course, these fools will blame Fresnillo for all their woes.

Chart of the day is.....

.....the Year To Date Small Silvers Sweepstakes (new new update)

We're into the last month, the home stretch and all that jazz, so we'll crank up the frequency of our superduper silver sweepstakes til the end of the year (the last update was here on Nov 23). Who's gonna be champeeeen?

(click to enlarge)

Endeavour Silver (EDR.to) is still out there as numero uno, but it's now getting pressured for the top spot by Bear Creek Mining (BCM.v) which has put on a great spurt in the last week or so. Fortuna (FVI.v) still looking solid in the bronze medal position.

Down amongst the also-rans, MAG Silver (MAG.to) (MVG) has made up quite a bit of ground in the last couple of weeks with a 30% upmove on good volumes. I have a sneaking suspicion that MAG may still beat out our benchmark, the silver bullion ETF (SLV), once December 31st comes around.

ECU Silver (ECU.to) = Half priced GATA membership next year.

The Year-To-Date Small Silvers Sweepstakes (new update)

It's been a couple of weeks since the last update, so let's see how things are developing.

(click to enlarge)

Endeavour Silver (EDR.to) has had the most magnificent month, moving up a full 100% (benchmarked to its Jan 1st price) so far this November. Top job, guys.

Personal fave Fortuna Silver (FVI.v) is now a firm second place, also having a good time this month. Great Panther (GPR.to) slips from 3rd to 4th and the ones below are basically in the same position as before. Wonderdog ECU Silver (ECU.to) is actually net negative for 2009 again...mindblowing on one level, but check the books and it's perfectly logical, really. Half price GATA next year looking evermore likely.

The Year-To-Date Small Silver Sweepstakes: Update

Here's the second installment, first was on October 23rd here.

click to enlarge

After we ran it last time, I was asked by a reader to add Bear Creek Mining (BCM.v) to the list cos said reader had done well on the stock this year. Yup can do, and BCM grabs 2nd place right off the bat. If there are any other suggestions for the next time we run this chart, just drop me a mail...happy to oblige (as long as the miner fits the category).

Leader for the prize is now Endeavour Silver (EDR.to) which has had a fine November so far. You go girl. GPR.to and FVI.v are up there battling hard. Coming up the rear (if you'll pardon the expression) is MAG Silver (MAG.to) and, of course, the dog of them all ECU Silver (ECU.to), though even that scam stock has managed to get into a YTD net positive situation thanks to the recent hysteria. It won't last.

Mag Silver (MVG) (MAG.to): Retail, the crop that never fails (Part 47)

Check out previous IKN posts here that show just how many times insiders have sold shares into the market this year. Now here's the latest in the looooong line of gimme da munneh transactions that sees management scoff in the faces of their shareholders once again.

MAG Silver Corp. (MAG)						As of October 6th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Oct 06/09	Sep 30/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-20,000	$6.320
Oct 06/09	Sep 29/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-10,000	$6.163
Oct 06/09	Sep 28/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-10,000	$6.300
Oct 06/09	Sep 25/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-10,000	$6.157

Another $300+k to soften the blow of not getting bought out (due to mgmt's own strategic incompetence), Mr. Jones? Oh how sweet.

No wonder only geologists take this company seriously nowadays ;-)

MAG Silver (MAG.to) (MVG) laughs at its shareholders again

MAG Silver (MVG) (MAG.to) management yet again says one thing and does another. For the sake of CAD$38,850 (the gross profit on the deal), the CFO at MAG Silver prefers to send yet another "we prefer to sell our own stock to you saps" signal to the market.

MAG Silver Corp. (MAG)						As of August 27th, 2009
Filing Date	Transaction Date	Insider Name	Ownership Type	Securities	Nature of transaction	# or value acquired or disposed of	Unit Price
Aug 27/09	Aug 11/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	10 - Disposition in the public market	-17,500	$5.220
Aug 27/09	Aug 11/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Common Shares	51 - Exercise of options	17,500	$3.000
Aug 27/09	Aug 11/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Options	51 - Exercise of options	-17,500	$3.000

We also note in passing that CFO Frank Hallam prefers to ignore TSX directives and file his trades after the allotted time period of 10 trading days, just another example of the lack of respect shown to others by the people in charge of this directionless operation. So with another 438,000 or so options at $3,00 to dump on the market still left in his pocket, Hallam has plenty of ammunition to make money and further dilute the share base at the expense of the loyal retail sheep around him.

If it were only one or two occasions, then fair enough. But the insider selling has been non-stop all year as witnessed by these previous posts. Speaking of previous posts, back on December 4th 2008, just after the Fresnillo buyout offer came, your humble correspondent said the company was "dead meat" and according to my calculations the only documented case of resurrection in the last 2,000 years has not been added to by this company. Yet another example of how great rocks can be wasted by a mediocre, self-serving bunch in charge.

DYODD.

Silver juniors update

Here's a chart showing the year-to-date performance of Fortuna Silver (FVI.v), First Majestic (FR.to), MAG Silver (MAG.to) and ECU Silver (ECU.to).

• The good news is that Otto has been telling you to buy FVI.v all year (as well as telling you to avoid MAG.to and ECU.to like the plague, with "not like so good" mentions of FR.to along the way, too).

• The better news is that people are actually beginning to believe me on this one. Y'see, I really wasn't joking, was I?

• The best news is that (as IKN Weekly subscribers now know after last week's edition) there's plenty more upside left in FVI.v and we now have a new, improved price target.

Stop buying dogs and get wise on LatAm junior miners. Subscribe to The IKN Weekly. End of blatant promo. Have....Nice....Day.

MAG Silver (MAG.to) (MVG) has a message for its shareholders

And the message is "You are very stupid, thanks for giving us your money."

Remember this post and this post, both from May 2009? The ones where we laid out all the inside stock sales going on at MAG Silver (MAG.to) (MVG) and saying "WTF?". What we have here is a bunch of directors that fist dumped that batch of shares on the market, then once the stock drops on the news that nobody wants to buy their badly run company any longer they grant themselves a whole new bunch of options at lower prices.

Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Harris, Jody Lynn	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	4,219	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Neal, Gordon	Indirect Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	41,178	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Megaw, Peter	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	10,938	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	MacInnis, Daniel Thomas	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	12,344	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Carlson, Eric	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	15,469	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	White, Derek Christopher	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	9,961	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Hallam, Frank	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	46,348	$5.320
Jun 29/09	Jun 23/09	Jones, R. Michael	Direct Ownership	Options	50 - Grant of options	9,141	$5.320

This is also the company that insists its (now ex) suitor, Fresnillo (FRES.L), is the bunch of morons and that they are all smart and innocent and supercool and stuff. So let's look at how MAG.to has performed compared to FRES.L this year:

Hmmmm....spot the dumbass company...spot the smart company....tough call, eh?

On May 22nd I said "sell MAG Silver" when it was trading at C$6.18. Today is June 30th and the stock is C$5.16...and it's still a sell. Seriously, who's going to buy this PoS except for Fresnillo? MAG.to has no exit strategy lined up and because of that it hardly matters if they've found the lost city of El Dorado. In this article a week or so ago, Toby Shute of Motley Fool (Shute is the smart exception that proves the mediocre rule over there) nailed the situation; here's the last paragraph, but go read the whole thing, cos he's right.

There's a broader lesson to be learned here for investors in mining juniors. When your corporate exit strategy focuses on selling out to a major like Vale (NYSE: VALE) or BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) or Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX), you might want to make sure that there's more than one likely bidder. Without that, you lose loads of leverage.

MAG Silver: The inside selling goes on

Megaw photographed while not selling things (for a change)

Hey wow! Not content with dumping 46k of his stock on the market between May 12th and May 21st, since we last updated on MAG Silver (MAG.to) (MVG) and the high level of insider-selling activity on May 22nd one of the chief offenders, Peter K. Megaw, director of MAG.to and described in his biog as " a well-known individual in the Mexican mining industry" (I shite thee not, kind reader) has found time to dump another 23,000 shares on to the market at U$5.50 or so.

Why is MAG Silver so keen on telling the world that their stock is undervalued and at the same time the people running the company just keep on selling their stock? Inquiring minds would like to know......

Why all the insider selling at MAG Silver (MVG) (MAG.to)?

I couldn't help but notice that the BoD at MAG Silver (MVG) (MAG.to), the very same people that believe their stock is undervalued by Fresnillo, have been quick to cash out of the company recently and sell large lumps of shares. "That's a bit weird", thought your humble correspondent, "I mean, on the one hand they're telling the world that the FRES.L deal seriously undervalues their shares and on the other hand they're quietly selling their own shares to a willing world and preferring cold hard cash for their own accounts. What gives?".

Of course I was perplexed by this, as you could never accuse the management team of any Canadian junior mining company to be A BUNCH OF SCHEMING, LOWLIFE, TWO-FACED CAPITALIST PIGS OF THE WORST SORT (oops! capslock stuck for a minute there..apologies), so there must be a decent reason. Thus I cast the Otto infonet and heard back that the mgmt is selling a few shares "for tax reasons". So that explains the following, I suppose:

• Peter Megaw has sold 46,000 shares since May 12th (just after receiving 11,250 options priced at C$5.54, too...ain't dat lucky?). Also strange is how he only sells his MAG Silver shares but doesn't touch his shares in either Candente or West Timmins.

• R. Michael Jones, who holds inside shares in no less than seven companies, has deemed that only MAG Silver is worthy of selling "to pay taxes", dumping 14,500 shares of MAG.to this month. Oh wow, a 12,188 options handout last month for you too, Mikey...lucky boy.

• CFO Frank Hallam managed to dump every single one of his 44,500 shares in MAG Silver on May 13th (got over six loonies apiece, too). And hey wow!!! He got 61,797 options granted to him in April, too. Ain't life grand, Frankie....?

So correct me if I'm wrong here, but (as just one example) a guy like Frank Hallam who was paid C$115,000 for his services in 2008 dumps over a quarter of a million dollars' worth of stock on the market just after getting a whole heap of newly minted options...and it's to pay off the tax bill that he himself should stump up on salary, not expect the company (or more precisely the shareholders of the company) to pay via slushy share dealings. Is that right?

Or In Other Words, Sell MAG Silver.

MAG Silver (MVG) (MAG.to): Get Real

If you've been following the wheels and deals at MAG Silver (MVG) (MAG.to), you'll know that despite the recent surge in Hope™ for the metals and mining sector the company's stock price has dropped back from the recent U$6+ prices to sit back at the price offered by Fresnillo in December. Here's a chart that wraps up the whole timeline.

click to enlarge

Now let's play Reality Versus Fantasy

Fantasy: Fresnillo is desperate to get its hands on MAG Silver's assets
Reality: It's a bear market. That means it's a buyer's market.

Fantasy: Fresnillo is about to sweeten the bid
Reality: Check the chart.

Fantasy: A rival bid is on the way.
Reality: No company with a sane CEO would make a hostile/white knight counterbid for an asset that it would have to share with Fresnillo afterwards.

Fantasy: January and February share price at MAG Silver
Reality: March and April share price at MAG Silver.

And if you still need a dose of reality after all this, check the comparative chart of MVG versus (my own fave silver play) Fortuna Silver (FVI.v) and the silver ETF (SLV) as a proxy to the metal. Any further questions?

Moral: Don't start fights that you cannot win. The end.

Mag Silver: dead meat already

An interesting press release from Mag Silver (MVG) (MAG.to) this morning concerning the Fresnillo buyout offer. Here's the link, and here's the main comment from Mag's CEO:

Dan MacInnis, CEO of MAG, commented, "This may be the first time in history that a hostile bidder has announced a bid at a price lower than the closing market price of the target's shares on the trading day prior to announcement. Analysts and a number of shareholders are now calling this a "take-under" offer. We are a little mystified by Fresnillo's actions, but our Board understands its fiduciary and other obligations and will respond more formally in due course. In the meantime, our shareholders have no need to do anything to respond to the Fresnillo announcement."

As this chart points out......

CEO MacInnis is stretching the truth with his argument today. Check this Reuters report dated December 1st for more evidence. This means just one thing; the MVG position is weak, and all the rhetoric in the world won't cover that fact up. And it all boils down to one, simple point: Nobody else will buy Mag Silver. The company has two choices;

1) Accept the Fresnillo offer
2) Watch the stock price fall to where its silver peers are trading.

The only reason that MVG has held up better than peers was the expectation of this FRES.L offer. If it's rejected, nobody else will buy MVG. Take that to the bank. And the result will be the wholesale dumping of its share price.

Be clear; Fresnillo has played this offer very smartly and has MVG over a barrel, the weak counterarguments shown by the MVG CEO today are testimony to that. He may be pissed that this offer means his options are out the money, but that's kapitalism, komrade.

Snippety stuff (beaten up LatAm juniors edition)

Blog sponsors Vena Resources (VEM.to) hit the airwaves with this press release update on its Pucara gold/copper project. The thing is long and deserves more than a couple of lines here, so go and read the whole thing. Suffice to say that work continues apace there and it looks like they're going to start getting some cashflow from the project soon.

Fresnillo's approach for MAG silver (MVG) (MAG.to) is now getting wider media attention. Here's Mineweb on the story, and note that they're wise enough to quote this humble corner of cyberspace as they explain to the wider world that MVG is now in play.

Farallon Resources (FAN.to) has released two significant pieces of news this week, Firstly this presser that announced it has started metals deliveries from its G-9 mine in Mexico. Secondly it reported today it has secured $7.75m in rollover and capex financing (and it's no mean feat to get such a capital injection with the wider market the way it is). The downside is yet more dilution to its share base, but at least FAN.to looks like it will be able to mine its ore competitively through this metals price slump. If this is as low as it goes, it's worth giving it some of your DD time, perhaps.........

Gold Hawk Resources (CGK.v) is still fighting the good fight and trying to get its Coricancha mine re-opened. It has paid a few shares and gotten itself an extension on its financing. Here's the press release. I shot a mail to the IR guy at CGK.v Jason Mercier and asked him whether the financing deal is dependent on collecting on its insurance policy (the insurers are dragging their heels a bit, but it looks like they'll pay soon enough). Here's the reply I got from Jason:

1. The extension of the loan repayment schedule is a show of support from our lenders and allows the Company to use its working capital to complete the permitting and approvals process and make plans for the restart instead of paying back the principal.

2. The cooperation of our lenders is a big show of support when you consider current financial markets and is another positive step towards restart.

3. The receipt of permit is absolutely key to returning to production, which is in part why we have not had much news since our submission in mid-August – saying that we are waiting on the Peruvian gov does not give much satisfaction. The expedited process has been speedy and we are being patient.

4. The insurance is a separate matter and there is not a connection to permits or loan extension.

So now you know a few more details about where CGK stands.

Fresnillo is finally making its move on MAG Silver

Scene from the Fresnillo's IPO in May this year

Ever since Fresnillo split away from the Mexican mining giant Peñoles, there has been speculation about not "if" but "when" it would make a move on MAG Silver (MAG.to in Toronto, MVG in the US). The two companies share a very large silver project in development in Mexico, and Fresnnillo made it crystal clear at the time of its London IPO that it would be using the raised funds for acquisitions and expansion.

Now that junior mine valuations have been put in the dumpster, Fresnillo is finally making its move. According to the PR released by MVG today, Fresnillo has recently bought large slugs of its stock at around $5 and now owns a touch under 20% of the company. It makes sense for Fresnillo to stop accumulating just under the 20% barrier to stop the shareholders' rights program from kicking in (check the link above for details, or check this Reuters report).

Make no mistake; MVG in now most definitely in play. Fresnillo has decided to risk this bear market and try for MVG while prices are still low. Whatever, but Fresnillo has drawn a clear line under this current share price and the risk/reward equation most definitely favours buying MVG.

DYODD, dude.

UPDATE: Here's a PR from MVG released tonight with an update on drill results at the JV MAG/Fresnillo silver project. Have a read and find out why Fresnillo is clearly keen to get 100% control of the future mine.