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Whether or not Cobroxin works isn't the issue.
The issue is that NPHC has no rights to sell the product as they granted that right to XCHO. We don't know the terms of that deal.
There are other issues. For example, what proprietary rights does NPHC have to this product? If anyone can make it, or something similar, then how can you believe earnings would be enough to justify a $125 market cap.
Without that basic information it is impossible to value NPHC. That's why the whole stock is just a silly exercise in trying to fool the public. A real company serious about its product would not be public at this stage to begin with. If it was public it would certainly provide its investors with the basic fundamental information necessary to determine a reasonable range of value.
That NPHC does not take its investors seriously means that NPHC is not serious about being in business for the long term. They are simply pushing out stock at this inflated valuation.
But.... they don't have to fool everyone. Just enough people to buy a few million dollars of useless stock.
OK, so XCHO has exclusive rights to market Cobroxin in the U.S. Is this true?
Why did NPHC sell those rights to XCHO? XCHO doesn't appear to have any particular advantages - total sales last quarter was $13,500. Total assets are $1,050,000.
Here is how XCHO describes itself - "XenaCare Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”, “XenaCare”, “XC Holdings”, “we”, “us” or “our”) was organized under the laws of Florida in June 2005 to formulate, market and distribute a line of clinical, life style performance and protective nutrition supplement products (“NSPs”)."
XCHO is a 12 cent stock with 50 million shares outstanding.
NPHC is a 45 cent stock with 220 million outstanding -
plus these new shares I guess: "On August 20, 2009, our Board of Directors authorized the offer and sale of our common stock at $0.08 per share. From September 1, 2009 through September 22, 2009, we sold 34,948,750 million common shares (the “Shares”) to 65 accredited investors for aggregate proceeds of $2,795,900."
doesn't make sense
Ok, i get it now - well, sorta
"In August, Nutra Pharma announced that it had granted XenaCare Holdings (OTCBB: XCHO - News) the exclusive license to market and distribute Cobroxin throughout the United States. XenaCare Holdings has planned its initial print marketing campaign for Cobroxin to begin this fall that includes advertising in Prevention, Health, Star, Woman's World, Soap Opera, and Self Magazines."
So, who gets what money from sales made by XCHO? Is that deal publicly available somewhere?
And if XCHO has the exclusive rights, why is everyone talking about NPHC selling the product online and whatnot.
I am confused. How does XCHO relate to NPHC?
I found the following via a google search on the name of one of the BONU directors, Raj Pamani. Stephen Browand also appears. I don't think this company succeeded in fulfilling the expectations stated by Mr. Pamani.
By the way, there appear to be at least two spelling referring to the same person. Pamani and Pamnani.
NY Security taps $3M in VC funds
By Solnik, Claude
Publication: Long Island Business News
Date: Friday, December 14 2001
You are viewing page 1
GARDEN CITY - In a sign that the security industry has increasing allure for investors, The New York Security Service Group last week said it reeled in $3 million from Quantum Venture Partners, a Manhattan venture capital firm.
The Garden City company, which provides security for corporations, celebrities and executives, said it would use the money to open offices around the world. The company had received $7 million from Quantum about a year ago
They're getting a lot of contracts," said Raj Pamani, managing partner at Quantum Venture Partners. "Security is a good place to be. Sept. 11 is a big reason. We feel a lot of federal money and private money will be deployed for security."
Taken together, the $10 million is Quantum's biggest investment to date. Earlier, it had invested $4 million in Fibernet, which provides broadband access to buildings in New York City, and about $5 million in a company that runs an awards ceremony for Indian films.
"We want to use this company (NYSSG) as a launching pad to look at other companies in this space," Pamani said. He noted that smaller tech security companies might make attractive acquisitions.
New York Security provides protection for executives and celebrities and their families, as well as evacuation plans and security programs for companies.
The company said it does about 65 percent of its business within the United States. It has six satellite offices. CEO Stephen Browand said the company plans to use the funds to open three more offices in Europe and Asia.
"We do everything from kidnap extractions through high-profile personal protection," Browand said. "We do security site surveys for Fortune 1000 companies. We deal an awful lot with high-profile individuals in the investment community."
Browand said the Sept. 11 events have resulted in contracts valued at about $500,000 a month.
The firm said going public wasn't in the company's plans, especially at a time when Wall Street has been unreceptive to IPOs.
"It's something we may do," said Browand.
What interests you about Buzz, in particular? So many scams, why this one?
Citron updated the EMKR report:
http://www.citronresearch.com/index.php/2008/09/09/emcore-emkr-nothing-plus-nothing-nothing/
stock ticker: EMKR
Emcore’s plan to spin out each division leaves investors with 2 bones and no meat.
It has been 6 months since Citron has been covering Emcore (EMKR:NASDAQ). Oil has made its unprecedented round-trip from $100 to $147 a barrel and back. Mainstream solar stocks have achieved record profits — and record valuations — in the anticipation of $200 oil …but Emcore is yet to book a single commercial size order from a verifiable counterparty. Compounding its credibility problems, management was forced to acknowledge that its largest claimed commercial order to date, PR’d with much ballyhoo, was a total write-down – months after Citron had exposed it as a fraud.
In the intervening six months, the company has burned through $20 million more of investor’s money as receivables and inventories have ballooned, leaving in its wake no tangible business accomplishments, only empty promises and even more “shadow customers” for their solar business. It is the opinion of Citron that if current management performance continues down this road, Emcore is on the fast track to becoming a penny stock.
What’s Changed? In our opinion, quite a lot.
Prices for photovoltaic grade silicon have passed their peak, and consensus is they are headed lower as new supply comes on line to meet demand over the next eighteen months, as wide-scale commercial deployment of solar panel projects continue at a brisk pace.
Emcore finally admitted that, as reported months ago by Citron, Green & Gold Energy’s huge orders are being written off the backlog, because the customer cannot pay for them.
Emcore turned another horrendous quarter, losing $11.6m on operations, consistent with its $33.7m loss turned in for 9 months of 2008. The only thing keeping its “EPS miss” down was, ironically, a huge increase in the share count – up more than 50% in the last year alone.
Analyst Scorecard: Canaccord, which had defended Emcore doggedly for months, admitted that Emcore’s Korea deals are a fantasy, and downgraded it to hold.
Tobin Smith’s Changewave newsletter endorsed Emcore.
Over this timespan of unprecedented oil prices, Emcore doesn’t have a single multi-megawatt order from a reputable and verifiable counterparty to show for it – only more “shadow customers”, whose ability to execute or pay can’t be verified.
Before we explain why this has happened to Emcore, let us first take a peek at the cash flow statement.
Follow the Money
The Truth is in the cash flow statement. Cash flow from operations remains consistently very negative. Quarterly free cash flow stands at about negative $12 million per quarter, roughly what it was a year ago in spite of spending $85 million on an acquisition and in spite of enjoying the best of times in the solar business. The accounts receivables portion was the main reason. Without further explanation from management, it appears to Citron as if Emcore continues to sell to fictitious companies (or at least fictitious orders), find a way to book it as revenue, and then reverse it by saying, as they did in this quarter, that the company in question is being sold so we have to cease the orders we have for them.
Unbilled revenues spiked from $6.4 million to $12 million quarter over quarter. That change is equivalent to 30% of the revenue growth quarter over quarter. Did something change with the way they do business or did management get more aggressive on recognizing revenues for some reason? And in spite of dealing with companies that seem to come and go such as Green & Gold Energy, EMKR’s allowance for doubtful accounts has dropped to an all-time low of just 0.7% of accounts receivable.
A report of earnings increase accompanied by unrelenting cash flow from operations losses spells trouble. Investors have to decide between the black and white – and management excuses.
Management vs Investors.
One question commonly posed to Citron is “why would companies ever commit fraud?” As an investor in the market, we are able to buy and sell companies as we see fit. But management doesn’t enjoy such flexibility. It has to wake up every day and face the enormous pressures of trying to make the best of what it previously sowed. Once overly optimistic claims cross the line into untruth and are subsequently exposed as falsehoods, loss of credibility becomes a slippery slope. We’ve seen this pattern over and over.
The Fantasy: Can two losing companies yield one profitable spinoff ?
Emcore still insists it is pursuing the strategy of “spinning off” its solar division into an IPO, somehow creating a profit from turning a dime into two nickels.
The harsh light of reality
The harsh reality is that Emcore’s terrestrial solar business is in deep trouble, having shown no signs of economic viability. In the quarter that may well mark the high point of pricing for oil and polysilicon, Emcore’s terrestrial solar division could book only $12 million in revenue. Emcore has burned $87 million in its solar business in the last six quarters. What’s more, it is Citron’s opinion after scrutinizing all available information about Emcore’s order announcements that at least 80% of Emcore’s current remaining backlog (even after dropping Green & Gold) will never be realized as revenue.
And the fiber division? Cliff diving at its finest.
Emcore has generated $38 million in losses in its fiber division since October 2006, averaging a loss of $5 million per quarter. The division they acquired from Intel was showing year over year revenue declines of 20% and 51% for the December and March quarters, and was unprofitable in June 2008, indicating no reversal of the pattern of declining revenues for the division — even though Intel was still performing the manufacturing and operations. Emcore will have to take over these activities by September 2008. Of course, management insists it will be able to run the operation better than Intel. Its track record, however, leaves little cause for encouragement.
When you back out Intel’s inventories of $31 million from EMKR’s balance sheet, it appears that inventories are at an all time low ($10 million less than last year’s $28 million inventory balance). This seems odd for a company that is about to blow the doors off.
The Blind Cheerleaders
Tobin Smith of Changewave investing recently published a glowing piece on Emcore.
http://www.moneyshow.com/investing/articles.asp?aid=tptp082108-15102
In his recommendations he seems to break the law countless times with a multitude of Reg FD violations.
For those of you who do not know Tobin, he is a newsletter writer with a sizeable following of the lowest common denominator of investors. This is not the first time Citron has encountered Tobin. He has been equally as bullish on three other stocks we profiled.
The first was Interpharma, (AMEX:IPA) which Citron wrote about when it was $7. Tobin called it a “legacy buy”.
http://www.citronresearch.com/index.php/2003/09/22/
The “ legacy” of IPA is 5c per share.
Marketwatch wrote the story of Tobin vs. Citron.
http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7BD2D8E0B3-CF81-450F-8AED-96A2E672ADFE%7D&siteid=mktw
Then there was Zeros and Ones (OTCBB:ZROS). In 2007, Tobin recommended this company that he claimed was going to revolutionize file transport speeds on the internet. His subscribers bought the stock up. Citron reported on ZROS :
http://www.citronresearch.com/index.php/2007/03/20/stocklemon-reports-on-zeros-and-ones-otcbbzros/
ZROS is now VOYT and the stock now trades at .16 cents.
American Superconductor (NASDAQ:AMSC) In June and July this year, Citron warned about this company, which Tobin went on to recommended just a few weeks ago at $38, with advice to “get more aggressive” at $35. Just three months later, today you can buy all you want around $21, and you don’t have to get aggressive about it, either.
So now we have our fourth stock to add to the list. Citron is so convinced of the terminal nature of Emcore’s problems that it makes this prediction: Not even Tobin Smith’s ego can save this company from its fate of ending up in penny stock land. Citron Research vs. Tobin Smith is like the Harlem Globetrotters vs The Washington Generals.
Stanford Group
Then Stanford Group published an analyst report more akin to a bulletin board glossy promo mailer than real research. Shockingly, they tabled each of Emcore’s terrestrial solar “orders”, an impressive list unless you apply even a modicum of critical thought. Then you see that the orders fall into 3 categories: unverifiable, proven fraudulent, and nearing completion.
For example, included are ES Systems of Korea, which has announced projects greater in size than the total world implementation of CPV, yet its website hasn’t changed in six months, and research turns up not a shred of tangible evidence that the company has the capability to execute on any projects whatsoever.
Then there’s SunPower a purported California investment group with no track record in solar projects, who claimed their project was dependent on tax credit legislation which was not law at the time of the announcement, and has since not become law.
Then there’s XinAo Group of China, again PR’d as though it was a big deal, but which is in reality a tiny test system of 50KW – estimated order value $17,000 a scant 1/20th of what would be needed for a field-size test.
And of course, Green & Gold Energy, which has already been written off by management’s own admission.
Of course, missing is any mention of Emcore’s cash burn rate or factoring further dilution into its valuation. Citron believes this is a fine example of analyst malpractice.
The hits just keep on coming.
Conclusion
It is the opinion of Citron Research that the analysts and cheerleaders are ignoring the reality that Emcore is still on a trajectory of running out of cash. Emcore is comprised of two terminally money-losing divisions, which cannot possibly justify a “spinoff IPO”. The PIPE investors in its last round have lost 50% of their money in a few short months. Yet the investment banking firms do what they do best — maneuvering for their next deal. This stock is headed for another dilutive round of financing, and the inevitable negative consequences for investors.
Cautious investing to all.
BTIM up a ton today. Anyone know why?
Believe me, if HYBR had a viable, cost-effective lithium battery technology, they would not have to pay for any publicity.
They don't.
There are many other companies pursuing this technology, with billions of dollars going into R&D.
What is your prediction on when they might "come to market"?
My prediction is ....... never.
There are an awful lot of companies chasing the lithium battery dream - most of which are way better funded and way more well-known than SLAT.
Man, those financials suck. I was definitely hoping for way better.
$42k in sales for the first half of the year on a $30mm market cap. yuck
Where have all the posters gone?
All our products are classified as Class II (Medium Risk) devices by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and clinical studies with our products are considered to be NSR (Non-Significant Risk Studies). Our business is governed by the FDA, and all products typically require 510(k) market clearance before they can be put in commercial distribution. Section 510(k) of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act, is available in certain instances for Class II (Medium Risk) products. It requires that before introducing most Class II devices into interstate commerce, the company introducing the product must first submit information to the FDA demonstrating that the device is substantially equivalent in terms of safety and effectiveness to a device legally marketed prior to March 1976.
All our products currently produced for us or resold by us are cleared for marketing in the United States under FDA's 510(k) regulations.
thanks Mike:
I see I missed the $189k. Thanks for the correction.
I have to be cautious on that cash generation though. Except for the rise in taxes owed, they would have lost cash this Q.
So I have to wonder about that gigantic buildup in receivables. Combining that with my lack of understanding of why 50% operating margins are sustainable, this is a definite stay-away.
What makes their product so special that they can charge so much? With 50% margins, competitors should flood in unless there's a deep moat here.
And though I have no specific reason to suspect any funny business here, some of these aspects are similar to scammy companies which report high EPS but aren't REALLY making anything.
Anyway, appreciate the reply.
Peter
Hey All:
I have questions about ZYXI. If anyone has already put in the time I would sure appreciate you saving me some time ....
1. Do I see correctly that there is absolutely NO cash, and that no cash is being generated?
2. How can their product be sold for 10x cost? Is there something incredibly specially great about their products over the competition?
3. Why do they have that huge "provision for discount to providers" in there? Some strange accounting....
4. Don't they need to raise cash real soon?
Thanks
Could someone please tell me what is the blog you are talking about?
You go, Tim! Love your unique style, and you're honest to boot.
http://www.forbes.com/free_forbes/2008/0811/028.html
Turning Pink Into Green
Listed on the no-man's-land stock market called the Pink Sheets, Green Earth Technologies isn't required to file current financials. Its last statement, for the year ended June 2007, showed only $100 in cash, no revenue or R&D spending, and a negative net worth. Yet since April its shares have jumped 1,400% to a recent $2.75, for a market cap of $220 million. The rise comes as Green Earth touts its development of G-Oil, described as a motor lubricant made not from petroleum but from discarded animal fat collected in Oklahoma, and which biodegrades after an oil change. Earlier this year venture capitalist Jeff Marshall, an ex-Bear Stearns official whose background is in information technology, became the boss, moved the firm, which has sported numerous names, from California to Stamford, Conn. and raised funds from private placements. He tells forbes the potential market for green products is so big Green Earth needs only a small market share. --William P. Barrett
other bits from today's 8k -
On July 14, 2008, Mr. Leach formally requested the resignations of Murray Fleming and Brian Lavery, founders and directors of the Company. Mr. Fleming responded in writing and agreed to resign if certain terms and conditions were met and performed by the Company. Mr. Lavery did not respond.
On July 15, 2008, during the course of the on-going internal investigation by Mr. Zisser, K&L/Gates, personal counsel for Mr. Leach, contacted Mr. Zisser by telephone and raised certain matters. These matters included Mr. Leach’s request for the resignation of Mr. Fleming and Mr. Lavery; the repayment of a line of credit to Mr. Fleming by the Company; a retainer payment made by the Company for Mr. Fleming’s personal SEC counsel arising out of the SEC inquiry; and, allegedly improper comments posted on stock message boards attributed to Mr. Fleming.
Mr. Leach’s counsel indicated to Mr. Zisser that they had reached certain conclusions relating to matters raised by the SEC staff in its inquiry, and objected to payments made and to be made by the Company to Mr. Fleming and on his behalf. It was their opinion that the SEC should be notified immediately by telephone , prior to the completion of the internal investigation
from today's 8k -
July 18, 2008
VIA EMAIL & FIRST CLASS MAIL
Mr. Murray Fleming
Mr. Brian Lavery
Nacel Energy Corporation
1128 12th Street, Suite B
Cody, Wyoming 82414
Re: Resignation
Dear Mr. Fleming and Mr. Lavery:
I am hereby resigning my position as President and Chief Executive Officer of Nacel Energy Corporation (“Nacel”), effective today. I will be available over the next two weeks to assist Nacel in an orderly transition.
Regrettably, despite my efforts over the last few weeks, we have been unable to reach mutual agreement as to the steps which need to be taken by Nacel to address the matters raised by the pending SEC investigation, including, but not limited to, the development of a corrective action plan and the public disclosure of material information. The investigation appears to revolve primarily around circumstances and events which took place prior to my retention as a consultant to Nacel and my appointment as President and CEO. It does not appear that we can come to any agreement as to the future of this company or the fulfillment by Nacel of its obligations as a public company to its shareholders. At minimum, these circumstances are hampering the ability of Nacel to move forward with its business development plan.
After much thought, I have concluded that I cannot continue to be associated with Nacel and am thus tendering my resignation. In addition, pursuant to Nacel’s by-laws and Wyoming law, I am entitled to indemnification by Nacel of my current and future legal fees and expenses that are being incurred in connection with the SEC’s investigation and any other proceedings or litigation that may relate to or arise from my association with Nacel. I request that I be provided with an advance of funds to pay for such fees and expenses.
Last, I request the return to me by Nacel of the four wind energy projects which I organized and delivered to Nacel, through Mr. Fleming, in connection with my retention by Nacel. In exchange, I will return the shares of Nacel restricted common stock that I received for these projects. Please be in touch so that we can coordinate this exchange, as well as the payment by Nacel of my current and future legal fees and expenses relating to Nacel.
Sincerely,
Dan Leach
cc: Martin Berliner, Esq.
David Zisser, Esq.
Stavroula E. Lambrakopoulos, Esq.
Robert H. Rosenblum, Esq.
Michael Williams, Esq.
Is that information re North Miami and other cities available from an independent publication of any sort, such as a local newspaper.
In searching, I was able to find only Press Releases from Ethos itself.
Thanks
BSHF may be like most pinks, but it is a bulletin board stock.
All filings up to date with SEC - not that they are pretty to look at.
Anyway, haven't seen any financials past January 31 because BSHF has an April 30 fiscal year end. That means a 10K is due by July 31, I believe.
Still dropping. Any news or simply the big insider dump?
How can you tell it's a short at ETRD?
In my worldview, it's 100x more likely to be an insider or financier with converts or something.
deleted post? what did it say?
It happens every day of the year.
except holidays and weekends....
I'm not a conspiracy theorist by any stretch but when there's a buck to be made, people try to take that opportunity no matter how shady it is.
that's it in a nutshell, and so it shall be forever
http://siliconinvestor.advfn.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=24684664
Here's one dated June 16.
Well, now that is very disengenuous.
That full page was an advertisement. You forgot to mention that, pumper. All you are doing on IHUB is discrediting your customers anyway.
How long are you guys going to get away with this behavior? Your disclaimer is awfully hard to access. Should be on every post.
http://siliconinvestor.advfn.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=24742249
David Baines on AUSE and GTXO
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/columnists/story.html?id=e7142374-4085-4d92-981d-2b0da156cd23
Shoe companies put the boots to shareholders
David Baines, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, July 11, 2008
These boots are made for walkin',
and that's just what they'll do.
One of these days these boots
are gonna walk all over you.
A song by Lee Hazlewood, sung by Nancy Sinatra
Vancouver has spawned two publicly traded shoe companies that are walking all over shareholders.
The first is Aussie Soles Group Ltd., which is marketing a line of Croc-type footwear. It has been touting sponsorship agreements with the Canadian Football League and the B.C. Lions.
This has been quite shocking for me. Whether they know it or not, the Lions have jumped into bed with one of the many grotty Vancouver bulletin-board promotions that have burned shareholders and sullied our city's financial reputation.
Until a few months ago, Aussie Soles was a private company headed by Craig Taplin, an Australian native who now lives in Kelowna.
Taplin merged the company with K-9 Concepts Inc., which had gone public on the OTC bulletin board in the United States on the ruse of selling "Vitamin C shower heads."
I say "ruse," because K-9 Concepts had no operating history and total assets of only $17,000, nearly all of it cash raised from the sale of seed shares.
It was obvious to me that this company was not being created to sell shower heads, but rather as a vehicle for some future promotion.
What typically happens in these situations is that the insiders corral all the shares, making it easy to control the share price. Once the shares are under wraps, the shell is sold to another promoter (in this case Taplin) who vends in his own business (Aussie Soles) and begins promoting the shares in earnest.
According to securities filings, Aussie Soles had "no revenues and nominal assets," but somehow Taplin was able to secure royalty agreements with the CFL and the Lions.
The football connection was shamelessly touted by Tim Fields, editor of a U.S. newsletter called Untapped Wealth.
"Soon every CFL team will be selling Aussie Soles with its team logo. Sales for the first year alone are projected to be 120,000 pairs," Fields gushed, suggesting that sales could reach $200 million and the stock would soar to high heaven.
The newsletter cost $300,000 and was financed by a mystery company called Sujon Limited, so it was nothing more than a paid ad.
Taplin told me he had no idea who Sujon is, and claimed he had nothing to do with the newsletter, but took no steps to to publicly repudiate its contents.
By the end of June, the stock had climbed to $2.55, giving the company a total stock market value of just under $100 million. In my view, public investors were being played for suckers: "If Aussie Soles follows the usual bulletin board pattern, it will turn into that familiar Peanuts football story -- the one where Lucy tees up the ball, then pulls it away just as Charlie Brown is about to kick it," I predicted.
Sure enough, the stock crashed this week by more than half, to $1.20, and will likely crash some more. And as sure as thunder follows lightning, the company will crash, too.
The Lions, however, are acting like it's business as usual. "Our sponsorship agreement is in good standing," George Chayka, the Lions' director of business development, told me Wednesday
He emphasized that the club has no involvement in the ownership or management of Aussie Soles, but I say this doesn't go far enough. By continuing to do business with this company, the Lions and the CFL are giving it a legitimacy it doesn't deserve.
The other Vancouver-created bulletin board company that has gone into the shoe business is GTX Corp.
It was spawned by Jeff Sharpe, owner of Innovative Fitness in Vancouver, as a mineral exploration company called Deeas Resources Inc.
Like K-Concepts, it was an obvious ruse. Sharpe had no prior exploration experience, and the property was a piece of moose pasture.
Sharpe sold the seed shares to a bunch of stooges who obligingly relinquished them to persons unknown shortly after they were cleared for trading.
At that juncture, Sharpe suddenly decided he didn't want to be in the exploration business after all. He sold the shell to Global Trek Xploration, a California company that is developing miniaturized GPS tracking technology that can be used in running shoes.
The shell then changed its name to GTX Corp., and the promotion began in earnest.
In what has to be a new low, U.S. newsletter huckster Geoff Eiten, a well-known promoter of Vancouver bulletin board dogs, touted GTX stock by invoking the case of Elizabeth Smart, the 14-year old Salt Lake City girl who was abducted for nine months by an insane polygamist who was subsequently ruled mentally unfit to stand trial.
"Frightening child abduction leads to revolutionary breakthrough," screamed the headline in Eiten's newsletter, OTC Special Situations Report, beside a "missing" poster of Smart.
"Next generation GPS tracking device so small it fits in a shoe! ... There's still lots more room for the stock to EXPLODE!"
For this newsletter and related services, a mysterious third party called Global Corp. Services Inc. is paying Eiten's company an astounding $1,067,000 plus expenses.
Once again, all this promotion has had the desired effect. The stock peaked at $2.68 last month, for a total market capitalization of $100 million. It has since slumped to $2.03, but I don't think this promotion is over yet.
Sharpe -- who is a director of the merged company -- earlier told me he has no idea who Global Corp. is. He acknowledged that some of Eiten's statements were "pretty ridiculous," and the board would meet "to consider the best way of letting the public know what's sanctioned and what's not."
Well, the board has met, but rather than repudiate any specific statements or promotional materials, the company is simply putting a disclaimer at the bottom of its news releases stating that it "cannot be held responsible or liable for the unauthorized use of this document's content by third parties unknown to the company."
This is really lame. It reminds me of the old joke about the banker who advises a new teller that, if a customer leaves without taking his money, try to get his attention by rapping "sharply" on the counter with a sponge.
dbaines@png.canwest.com
David Baines on GTXO and AUSE
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/columnists/story.html?id=e7142374-4085-4d92-981d-2b0da156cd23
Shoe companies put the boots to shareholders
David Baines, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, July 11, 2008
These boots are made for walkin',
and that's just what they'll do.
One of these days these boots
are gonna walk all over you.
A song by Lee Hazlewood, sung by Nancy Sinatra
Vancouver has spawned two publicly traded shoe companies that are walking all over shareholders.
The first is Aussie Soles Group Ltd., which is marketing a line of Croc-type footwear. It has been touting sponsorship agreements with the Canadian Football League and the B.C. Lions.
This has been quite shocking for me. Whether they know it or not, the Lions have jumped into bed with one of the many grotty Vancouver bulletin-board promotions that have burned shareholders and sullied our city's financial reputation.
Until a few months ago, Aussie Soles was a private company headed by Craig Taplin, an Australian native who now lives in Kelowna.
Taplin merged the company with K-9 Concepts Inc., which had gone public on the OTC bulletin board in the United States on the ruse of selling "Vitamin C shower heads."
I say "ruse," because K-9 Concepts had no operating history and total assets of only $17,000, nearly all of it cash raised from the sale of seed shares.
It was obvious to me that this company was not being created to sell shower heads, but rather as a vehicle for some future promotion.
What typically happens in these situations is that the insiders corral all the shares, making it easy to control the share price. Once the shares are under wraps, the shell is sold to another promoter (in this case Taplin) who vends in his own business (Aussie Soles) and begins promoting the shares in earnest.
According to securities filings, Aussie Soles had "no revenues and nominal assets," but somehow Taplin was able to secure royalty agreements with the CFL and the Lions.
The football connection was shamelessly touted by Tim Fields, editor of a U.S. newsletter called Untapped Wealth.
"Soon every CFL team will be selling Aussie Soles with its team logo. Sales for the first year alone are projected to be 120,000 pairs," Fields gushed, suggesting that sales could reach $200 million and the stock would soar to high heaven.
The newsletter cost $300,000 and was financed by a mystery company called Sujon Limited, so it was nothing more than a paid ad.
Taplin told me he had no idea who Sujon is, and claimed he had nothing to do with the newsletter, but took no steps to to publicly repudiate its contents.
By the end of June, the stock had climbed to $2.55, giving the company a total stock market value of just under $100 million. In my view, public investors were being played for suckers: "If Aussie Soles follows the usual bulletin board pattern, it will turn into that familiar Peanuts football story -- the one where Lucy tees up the ball, then pulls it away just as Charlie Brown is about to kick it," I predicted.
Sure enough, the stock crashed this week by more than half, to $1.20, and will likely crash some more. And as sure as thunder follows lightning, the company will crash, too.
The Lions, however, are acting like it's business as usual. "Our sponsorship agreement is in good standing," George Chayka, the Lions' director of business development, told me Wednesday
He emphasized that the club has no involvement in the ownership or management of Aussie Soles, but I say this doesn't go far enough. By continuing to do business with this company, the Lions and the CFL are giving it a legitimacy it doesn't deserve.
The other Vancouver-created bulletin board company that has gone into the shoe business is GTX Corp.
It was spawned by Jeff Sharpe, owner of Innovative Fitness in Vancouver, as a mineral exploration company called Deeas Resources Inc.
Like K-Concepts, it was an obvious ruse. Sharpe had no prior exploration experience, and the property was a piece of moose pasture.
Sharpe sold the seed shares to a bunch of stooges who obligingly relinquished them to persons unknown shortly after they were cleared for trading.
At that juncture, Sharpe suddenly decided he didn't want to be in the exploration business after all. He sold the shell to Global Trek Xploration, a California company that is developing miniaturized GPS tracking technology that can be used in running shoes.
The shell then changed its name to GTX Corp., and the promotion began in earnest.
In what has to be a new low, U.S. newsletter huckster Geoff Eiten, a well-known promoter of Vancouver bulletin board dogs, touted GTX stock by invoking the case of Elizabeth Smart, the 14-year old Salt Lake City girl who was abducted for nine months by an insane polygamist who was subsequently ruled mentally unfit to stand trial.
"Frightening child abduction leads to revolutionary breakthrough," screamed the headline in Eiten's newsletter, OTC Special Situations Report, beside a "missing" poster of Smart.
"Next generation GPS tracking device so small it fits in a shoe! ... There's still lots more room for the stock to EXPLODE!"
For this newsletter and related services, a mysterious third party called Global Corp. Services Inc. is paying Eiten's company an astounding $1,067,000 plus expenses.
Once again, all this promotion has had the desired effect. The stock peaked at $2.68 last month, for a total market capitalization of $100 million. It has since slumped to $2.03, but I don't think this promotion is over yet.
Sharpe -- who is a director of the merged company -- earlier told me he has no idea who Global Corp. is. He acknowledged that some of Eiten's statements were "pretty ridiculous," and the board would meet "to consider the best way of letting the public know what's sanctioned and what's not."
Well, the board has met, but rather than repudiate any specific statements or promotional materials, the company is simply putting a disclaimer at the bottom of its news releases stating that it "cannot be held responsible or liable for the unauthorized use of this document's content by third parties unknown to the company."
This is really lame. It reminds me of the old joke about the banker who advises a new teller that, if a customer leaves without taking his money, try to get his attention by rapping "sharply" on the counter with a sponge.
dbaines@png.canwest.com
http://www.qualitystocks.net/disclaimer.php
HYBR: QualityStocks received $187,424 from a third party for 90 days of services and received $473,497.00 from HYBR for 90 days of services.
Full page stock promotion ad for SLAT in USA Today today.
OK, I apologize for getting feisty. I'm not so sure, not sure of anything in the market, ever.
I started looking at the company and saw the pp. Just pointing out something I feel is important.
glta, peter
You were pimping IDAE well before Joe Abrams came on board.
Suddenly you guys appeared right after the pp - such a coincidence.
What does that REGDEX contain, btw, since you are so knowledgable about IDAE? Or are filings not important?
IDAE - let's get real here:
They issued this month the equivalent of 5.7 million shares in exchange for $2.1 million - that's 37 cents per share.
Also, check history of stocks with Barry Honig involvement.
First comes the pump, then comes the _______.
On June 5, 2008, IdeaEdge, Inc., a Colorado corporation ("we," "us," "our," or the "Company"), entered into a subscription agreement (the “Subscription Agreement”) with four accredited investors pursuant to which we issued 12,000 shares of our Series A Cumulative Convertible Preferred Stock (the “Series A Stock”) and warrants to purchase an additional 1,818,182 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $0.50 per share, in exchange for gross proceeds totaling $1,200,000.
This financing transaction resulted in net proceeds to us of $1,150,000, after deducting fees and expenses. RBW, Inc. (“RBW”) and GRQ Consultants, Inc. acted as finders in connection with the transaction and received 108,784 and 181,306 shares, respectively, (for a total of 290,090 shares) of our unregistered common stock as finders compensation. As further consideration for its services, RBW will receive an additional 120,000 shares of our common stock in compensation directly from the share holdings of our three founding stockholders, James Collas, Chris Nicolaidis and Jeffrey Hall. The agreement between RBW and the founding stockholders is subject to finalizing terms between the parties concerning proxies over voting the share holdings of RBW and other related stockholders.
Voluntary Conversion. Each share of Series A Stock is convertible at the election of the holders at any time into approximately 303 shares of our common stock, subject to increase under the anti-dilution provisions under the Certificate of Designation and the Subscription Agreement upon the occurrence of events as defined therein.
Hey, i just post what comes up on google - i didn't express an opinion. Why are you jumping at it?
Anyway, where do you see 13 years ago?
TAKE NOTICE that pursuant to Part 10 of By-law 20 of the Investment Dealers Association of
Canada (“the Association”), a hearing will be held before a hearing panel (“the Hearing Panel”)
on a date to be fixed by the Hearing Panel on Friday, November 25, 2005,
Mr. Carino is mentioned in this complaint involving a stockbroker with associations with less than savory characters and offshore accounts.
http://siliconinvestor.advfn.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=21861514
Regis Possino - In 1995, Possino pleaded guilty in a Los
Angeles federal court to participating in a
fraudulent scheme to use overvalued stocks to
inflate an insurance company’s balance sheet
Phillippe Hababou (aka Phillippe Solomon)
Hababou was arrested in France and sentenced
to 3 years in prison on April 16, 2004 for
providing false banking statements in
connection with Aerolyon (now L’Air
Holdings)
Rafi Khan In May 2000 the SEC barred Khan from
associating with any broker or dealer (with a
right to reapply for association after five years)
for his role in the manipulation of several
stocks. In 2002 the SEC alleged that Khan had
violated the terms of his order and sought
testimony from Khan’s wife, Rubina Khan
Rakesh Saxena Saxena was arrested in BC in connection with
a bank fraud case in which it is alleged that
Saxena embezzled $88 million from a bank in
Thailand. He is currently under house arrest in
Vancouver awaiting the outcome of extradition
proceedings.
Harvey Rubenstein Rubenstein is a former stockbroker and stock
promoter who has served multiple prison
sentences in Canada and the U.S. for fraud and
wash trading. Rubenstein has since been
pardoned.
74. Taub’s assistant, acting on instructions from Taylor, attempted to journal 500,000 shares
of Trezac from Z3 Ltd. to Sharpe Capital Ltd. (“Sharpe Ltd.”), a company for which
Taub was the registered representative.
75. When research compliance personnel rejected the journal request, new documentation
was prepared by Taub’s assistant in which Frank Carino, the principal of Sharpe Ltd.
stated that the journal request related to a personal settlement between the principals of
Z3 Ltd. and Sharpe Ltd. and, further, that the journal request was made “without
involvement of any other companies, including Trezac”.
Nice post - thanks for sharing your experience.
I don't see the skull& crossbones for AUSE.
http://www.pinksheets.com/pink/quote/quote.jsp?symbol=ause
I think they put the skull & crossbones if it's being promoted with mailers or spam, and there is no up to date financial information.
I know it's been promoted with a mailer.
http://siliconinvestor.advfn.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=24617428
However, it looks like the filings are pretty current.
For reasons I don't understand, they've started rating these bb stocks in addition to the pinks.