| |
Company aims to terminate trouble,
not people: AEGIS Industries, Inc. by Glenn
Wilkins - AllPennyStocks.com News Reporter
May 2, 2007 (AllPennyStocks.com Media Inc.) - It is an
emotional, unmistakable message one encounters when opening
Aegis Industries’ website; a vision of Old Glory, upon which
is superimposed the words: “Nothing is more precious, and
therefore more worth fighting for, than freedom.”
“Aegis Industries (OTCBB:AGIN).
Stewards of Homeland Security”, the message simply ends. The
state of readiness against terrorist attacks since 9/11
remains the topic for debate, but Aegis, the company founded
in 2002 and headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, aims to
protect citizens without unsettling them. “Terminate trouble,
not people”, is its slogan.
The company’s objective is to satisfy the growing need for
less-than-lethal weapons in the defense, law enforcement and
private security industries. Aegis argues in company
literature that officers in the above named professions now
face increasingly complex, dangerous and more closely
scrutinized situations worldwide.
Aegis claims that through solid science and thorough safety
testing, combined with management’s experience on the front
lines, the company develops multi-functional immediate force
products that are safe, easy to deploy and offer a full range
of options.
The company harbors the opinion that market is ready for these
products. President Bush’s Fiscal Budget Request for fiscal
2008 includes nearly $500 billion for the defense department,
and more than $141 billion to fight the war on global terror
(all figures in U.S. dollars unless specified otherwise).
There are more than 800,000 police officers in the United
States, whose departments are embracing less-than-lethal
technology. The market for stun guns alone is worth an
estimated $10 billion.
Aegis’ flagship product is the Mark 63 Trident, a multipurpose
stun baton, integrating incapacitation technology with warning
system, flash-laser, and crowd control and spray capabilities.
The company says the Mark 63 is more economical to operate and
maintain than rival products and can be discharged numerous
times without having to replace expensive cartridges.
Other products on which Aegis hangs its reputation include the
MK64 Raptor, a shoulder-fired, pump-operated, semi-automatic
launcher capable of firing a 64-millimetre ring airfoil
projectile (RAP, hence, the name Raptor), or delivering pepper
powder or incapacitation devices out to 200 feet.
Still another product is the hand-held crowd control device
dubbed the MK65 Polaris. Weighing around a pound and measuring
only 48 inches (smaller model is 36 inches), the “robust yet
flexible” Polaris is resistant to cutting or shattering under
extreme heat or light. Company literature also lauds the
device’s versatility.
Aegis founder Ken Stethem is a retired Navy SEAL and explosive
disposal technician with more than 20 years of military
operations and training experience. The leadership team with
which Stethem surrounds himself consists of President Paul
Evancoe, who retired from the military after a 25-year career,
including a stint in counterterrorism with the State
Department.
Chief Financial Officer Dennis Mee brings an extensive
background in management consulting to the table, and also
served as vice-president, finance with Cable & Wireless
Telecommunications.
The most recent news event creating a buzz around the
Rockville offices of Aegis involves a possible merger with
Washington, D.C.-based Z5 Technologies, a designer of
lightweight products for instantaneous field-based voice and
data communications.
If, as and when the merger goes through, it would
significantly enhance Aegis’ technology base, product
offerings and market share in the defense industry. Homeland
security industry trackers expect spending in this field to
double by 2010, and Aegis is chasing its share of this
expanding pie.
Research and development is an investment, but it also comes
with its growing pains. Aegis was in the red to the tune of
$105,000 when fiscal 2006 ended last October.
“Operating expenses included significant legal and accounting
expenses,” the company reported then, “as well as marketing
and promotion expenses. But, “we expect”, Aegis concludes
hopefully, “to continue to use cash in our operating
activities as we enter into our new business.”
Aegis’ stock, which trades on the OTC market under the symbol
AGIN, is progressing in the direction of the 52-week peak of
$1.07, the price achieved in late March, climbing out of a
55-cent trough to which it slumped in November. This is a
company that is branching out, creating alliances to expand
its reach at a critical time in American history when the
atmosphere is growing more dangerous and more agencies
responsible for our safety are hearkening to the products
Aegis offers. Investors would be wise to do the same.
Copyright © 2007 AllPennyStocks.com. All
rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of
AllPennyStocks.com's content is expressly prohibited without
the prior written consent of AllPennyStocks.com.
AllPennyStocks.com shall not be liable for any errors or
delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance
thereon.
Although the majority of
AllPennyStocks.com reports are independent, it has received
compensation for carrying the report on Aegis Industries, Inc., the compensation is three thousand dollars from a
third-party, Equity Alliance International. This creates an inherent
conflict of interest and readers are encouraged to view the
main disclaimer at
/aps_us/company_spotlights/archives/agin.asp
|
|
