Let’s say, for example, it’s the end of the third quarter. And, just fer sayin’s sake, that your Q3 wasn’t the most stellar compared to recent numbers. So what are your choices, CEO-Talking-With-IR-Department?
1: Just run the quarterly number as per normal, play it straight, no hiding of a slightly disappointing quarter.
2: Lipstick that pig.
Exhibit A: The title of Lake Shore Gold’s (LSG) (LSG.to) 3q15 production NR this morning:
Yup you got it, you hide the 40.6K oz number for the quarter by throwing in the two previous quarters of outsized production and make it all look sooooo smoooooth. Oh Tony, you’re so soooo smoooooth. And the funny thing is, these 3q15 numbers are really pretty good because what we out here are worried about these days are profitable ounces, not ounces per se. But old habits die hard in spindoctor circles and the fools running IR departments just cannot resist reaching for the canister of Bullshit Spray.
Do us all a favour, mining IR people: Stop the stupid once and for all. It gets to the point where we think you’re just insulting us.