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Biotech / Medical : Biotech vs. Shorts -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: biowa who wrote (299)	12/7/1999 1:42:00 PM
From: Biomaven	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 427

Here's a neat toy for anyone interested. The nasdaqtrader site allows you to search for stocks which are UPC 11830 restricted. Here's what this means: A security becomes restricted pursuant to UPC 11830 when the total number of shares that market participants have failed to deliver in that security exceeds 0.5% of the total shares outstanding. In practice, securities with large fail-to-deliver positions are difficult to borrow. This basically means that further shorting is difficult, if not impossible, and a squeeze is at least a vague possibility. (But my advice is never, ever even think of waiting for a squeeze to bail you out of a real loser - it won't happen. On seeing "let's all call in our certificates" any sensible long runs for the hills). Here are the current NASDAQ index biotechs which have UPC 11830's: AQLA Aquila Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. ARIA ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. CLTR Coulter Pharmaceutical, Inc. GLIA Gliatech Inc. SCLN SciClone ZONA Zonagen, Inc. (I personally own the first four of these). AQLA is a surprise - pretty thinly traded, no convertible, hadn't heard of shorting buzz. I own a little, bought at around 1 1/2 because I felt the stock was just too beaten down, and they actually have a reasonable shot at some real success with their cow mastitis vaccine. (A high-risk stock, of course). ARIAD is no surprise at all - one group of preferred holders shorted and have been refused conversion. CLTR and GLIA aren't unexpected. Shorts could get into big trouble on both of these real easily. I have good-sized (for me) positions in both. SCLN and ZONA are standard popular shorts. Search site is: nasdaqtrader.com Peter