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Microcap & Penny Stocks : TGL WHAAAAAAAT! Alerts, thoughts, discussion. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rocket Red who wrote (115726)	6/9/2003 9:40:57 PM
From: Rocket Red	Respond to of 150070

Corporate IR Pros Discuss Ways To Battle Short Sellers Monday June 9, 6:23 pm ET By Phyllis Plitch, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES KISSIMMEE, Fla. (Dow Jones)--Investor-relations officers vented their frustrations Monday over the challenges they face warding off short sellers. A panel devoted to "managing relationships with hedge funds and short sellers in a volatile market" at the National Investor Relations Institute's annual conference here drew dozens of investor-relations pros. Often on the front lines in their company's efforts to protect their shares from trading meltdowns, some have launched crusades to get to the bottom of who is shorting their stock, which they say can often be an exploitative and destructive trading strategy. "I would like to see more companies fight the attack dogs, and I would like to see the SEC put pressure on them for market manipulation," said J. Warren Henry, referring, he said, to short sellers who band together and spread rumors and misinformation about companies. Henry, who heads investor-relations at Dobson Communications Corp. (NasdaqSC:DCEL - News) , recounted a battle with short sellers in September 2001, when the wireless company hit a crisis over a corporate loan to founding- family members, a situation that has since been resolved. There are ways to keep short sellers at bay: "If you always operate in a good market, operate in a strong sector, never have any negative surprises and always meet expectations," he quipped. "That's impossible." However, Henry did advocate several steps an executive can take to thwart short sellers, such as trying to persuade shareholders not to allow their shares to be borrowed or persuade investors to hold shares in their own names, rather than in the names of their brokerages. Several NIRI members related their own experiences, including one investor- relations executive who was trying to figure out how to deal with a research note that strongly advocated shorting his company's stock. One of his colleagues piped in: "I would strongly encourage you to sue." Sally Curley, vice president of investor relations for Genzyme Corp. (NasdaqNM:GENZ - News) , noted that the New York Stock Exchange (News - Websites) is offering a new service to listed companies to get more timely information about short interest in one's stock. But it's too soon to tell, she said, whether the information will prove to be beneficial or "serve to drive us all crazy." -Phyllis Plitch, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-2357