[isn't it also considered internet fraud and securities manipulation when "shortsellers" are constantly bashing a stock in an attempt to bring the stock price down?]
I, for one, am not shorting DGIV, although I can't speak for others on this thread.
I spent some time doing some research on what you can and can't say on the Internet, based on existing securities laws. The results were kind of interesting, and give more leeway to "hypesters" and "bashers" than I thought (freedom of speech and all that). Here's my interpretation:
* Any paid promoter who is promoting a long or short position has to accurately disclose their compensation (cash, shares, etc.) [I'm not a paid promoter for this or any stock.] Also, financial industry "professionals" should disclose that fact [in their profiles perhaps?]. One case that was mentioned involved a broker who posted his 800 number on a public bulletin board and said they should call it for more information, without mentioning that he was pushing a stock or was a broker. [Doesn't apply to me, since I'm an engineer.]
* You can't claim that an investment is risk-free or that it will produce a guaranteed profit (i.e., you can't say, "The stock of company XYZ is going to double!")
* You can't reveal non-public "inside information" -- for example, you can't say "Company XYZ got a large contract" unless the company releases that information first.
* People can not claim to be somebody else.
* You can not make statements that you know are false and that can be proven to be false. However, the so-called "hypesters" and "bashers" are in theory able to express any opinion, including "I think it's going to rocket up" or "I think it is a scam".
* Posting the same message in many different places can be considered hyping for the purpose of market manipulation. [So, let's see... there are, I think 4 DGIV threads on SI, plus a couple on AOL, and some people have posted nearly identical messages on all of them saying how great DGIV is, and what its prospects are...]. This is kind of a "gray area" though and I couldn't find anything on "bashing".
* The company can not issue false statements to boost its share price.
Paul M. |
