Paul,
>[IOM crash] Because my recollection is different
>from Jurgis's.
You owe me big - I looked up June 1996
archives of the IOM thread. :-) You are right, the
turning point was NOT a revenue shortfall. It was
the secondary offering for institutional investors
below market price. However, there was no sudden "death blow"
top. The stock started trading down, then Cabbott newsletter
got compromised, then there was revenue shortfall
or quality problems (I don't remember which) in Europe.
If you have time to read 50K messages, you can figure it
all out yourself. :-)
I doubt if short sellers made a lot of money on
IOM. It is down 2/3 from the top. Since the ascent was
fast, it's unlikely you would have shorted at the top.
If you shorted at $18, which was the
offering price of the secondary, you would have made
~$7-8. It depends whether you consider that worth your risk.
IMO, shorting a broken stock is less risky
and ultimately more profitable. But then, most Internet
companies have farther to fall. :-)
Jurgis |
