If I might add two cents to the short puzzle: not all shares of Ashton are marginable (brokerages vary), and not all marginable shares are on margin (IRAs, held in certificate, etc.), hence, the shorts can only "play" with a certain amount of the float. Since the available float is limited on an issue like ASTN, we can have a lot higher volatility than say CSCO or INTC.
I believe that after all is said and done, the shorts can give the impression of a crumbling stock, however, this is mostly a "virtual" impression, since the bid/ask numbers can be manipulated in a variety of schemes through organized buying and selling.
Longs need not worry until something really fundamental changes. (MST's constant reminders)
Shorts only need to worry when a serious institution begins buying up the shares and taking them out of circ. Likewise, if most of the margined shares out there were put on the cash side of investors' accounts; and, if, a big buyer for the stock came out of the woodwork: the shorts would get squeezed bigtime as long as demand for the stock remained high. As long as this condition (people taking the stock out of circ/off margin) doesn't occur, the shorts can continue to play and serve their role as underlying support for the security.
How warrants ultimately fit in is a little beyond my thinking at the moment, but, in theory I would think the availability of warrants should help stabilize the stock or at least help improve the perceptions around its liquidity.
Volumes of Ashton in the last couple of months have been very good. This is an excellent sign for longs. If volumes began to drop, that could be bad, so beware.
Stay long and prosper. Only go to the short-side to maximize profits, or sell outright if the fundamentals crumble.
Just my two cents for what its worth.
Happy trading. |
