I'm a major stockholder and not an employee but I watch this site to get an inside read on the company. I do not like what I see. Several of us are watching. The worst of Noble's financial issues are NOT due to product prices. Too many bad decisions, bad economic projections, too much debt, too much stock issued, bad partnerships, bad company buy with Rosetta, bad calls on international projects, too many getting raises they have not earned and large salaries and bonuses they don't deserve and I see comments about management conducting personal businesses on company time. I see that no responsible management was laid off and only a couple minor type supervisors. I believe lots of management have a lack of expertise in industry, and hired because they are someone's buddy. Next layoffs must include those who put the company in this bind.
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Not to mention the dam spending going on in Colorado. Look at NobleCOLORADO.com web site and explain why we're giving money to a kids theater thing and then there's the millions of dollars spent on tv advertising and Broncos (who got all the free tix??) . How does Dave justify this? Why even its own web site for commercials?
Yes Noble is now "bottom of the barrel". Everyone knows it... Nobody wants to work here. Most everyone here is trying to get out. Some lucky ones have found good jobs with other companies. When things improve it will mass exodus.
The die has been cast. These managers have a long history of making bad decisions. When faced with their failures they attempt to distract and cover up often by doubling down or blaming others. Don't expect their behavior to change. It's their nature. The board is complicite and the large institutional stock holders that own the majority of shares are oblivious. Keep your eyes open and head for the exits.
I wonder what Dave Stove did to deserve a big raise. It seems like Noble is going down the hill further and further as long as Susan’s gap mentality and her false egos exist. Unfortunately, Noble Management never learns from their mistakes they have made in the past few years. Look what the inexperience new venture middle manager and his group did to the Falkland project and yet he is doing it again in Suriname. Do we really want another Enron?
Noble Energy was once a great company to work for. It has seemed to go down hill over the last few years. I don't know if it was GAP or just the swing in culture. No one planning for the future in a way that a CEO making millions a year and who gave himself a raise should. How can you give yourself a raise and layoff 800+ people? why would the board approve this?
That was due to Sunday's Israeli Supreme Court decision.
NBL down 9.0% percent today. Like what was said in an earlier post... why would anyone want to own this stock? That's a shame.
Why would anyone own this stock? This company was floundering at $100 oil.
Keep this in mind. Noble is a crap company with crap leadership at ALL levels.
If my options were not so under water I'd sell everything I currently hold. Your observations are astute and correct. Senior VP's have lost their way and are riding on ego only. They bought into Susan's GAP fantasy that it would give us the competitive edge by using Trained Intuition and other mumbo jumbo. Noble has spent tens of millions of dollars on GAP training and the GAP handlers that follow the Sr. VP's yet there has been no measurable benefit. In fact it has cost the company tens of millions in poor decisions based on their BREAKTHROUGH thinking. Add the toxic environment in most of the business units due to inept and draconian managers and you have a company that will not be here in 5 years.
If I was a major stockholder I would raise a MAJOR stink over how poorly the company is now managed.
Noble is a sinking ship.
Despite agreeing with the above criticisms of senior management I just don't believe Noble's major stockholders are ready or willing to confront them. First, the major stock owners are either large institutional investors (89%) or insiders (2%). They've repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to support management's bad decisions. If one of these large institutional investors was unhappy if would be felt in some way, rumblings in the halls or press releases in the media. There is no evidence of either. Second, a single owner in the remaining 9% interest doesn't have enough shares to motivate a change in the board or chief executives. An investor in this category would be more successful pumping and dumping their stock. Sorry folks, it would be nice if investors held management accountable, but without and Ichan type interest holder it's not going to happen.
Let's be honest... Noble blows. We all know it.
ABSOLUTELY WELL SAID. THERE WERE MANY THAT WERE LAID OFF WHO WERE SEASONED INDUSTRY EMPLOYEES WHO MADE THESE SAME OBSERVATIONS OVER A YEAR AGO.