Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Non-Tech : E*Trade (NYSE:ET) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Spytrdr who wrote (9062)	10/26/1999 9:14:00 PM
From: blake roberts	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13953

Jackass, it was not the point that I TRIED to cancel a market order, I KNOW you cannot USUALLY do that, although sometimes you can, it was the point that I was TOLD I was out of the order and then they reinstated it later at market again. Jeez, you are thick.

To: Spytrdr who wrote (9062)	10/27/1999 10:54:00 AM
From: ecommerceman	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 13953

Although I am insanely long ETrade (at least by what the "book" tells you to do), I must admit to being a little disturbed and disappointed yesterday when I picked up a copy of USA Today and found the following passage about internet companies which have diluted their shares with very large stock options. Here is what it says: "Top Offenders "So where is the potential dilution the worst? Consider Redback Networks, with 41% of new stock due to employees... "Other examples: "EMusic has [created] a 40% dilution of current shares outstanding... "ETrade faces 35% dilution on its current outstanding shares. CEO Christos Cotsakos has options equivalent to fewer than 5% of the company's outstanding shares." A few other passages from the article: "Last May, consultant Wm. Mercer did a similar study of 32 internet companies and found only 15.7% median dilution. "And the trend is accelerating. The potential dilution for companies in the USA Today Internet 100 that went public after Jan. 1, 1999 is 25.6%... 'Is it really necessary to have all this dilution?' asks Michael Reznick at William Mercer. "Most of these young companies have yet to make a profit, and the big damage from options dilution will be hidden to many investors until after the company stops losing money. "Under accounting standards, once a company becomes profitable, net income is divided by a company's outstanding shares to determine its earnings per share, and by shares that have been granted under options... "For instance, if Amazon were to turn a profit, its net income would be divided by 400 million shares to figure out its earnings per share, rather than the 337 million shares now outstanding used to calculate loss per share, says Northern Funds Gilbert. That nearly 19% increase in shares outstanding can make a big difference when Wall Street values a company's stock.** "Unknowing investors, and even some stock analysts may be caught off guard by the effect. 'If Amazon does turn profitable, it may have a bigger hurdle to justify its valuation than it does now.'" Perhaps I'm overly concerned about this issue, but I don't like to read where the stock which makes up 2/3s of my portfolio is listed as one of the "top offenders" when it comes to diluting my shares with stock options. I'd be interested, of course, in any comments folks have about why this should or should not concern us...