Organovo Holdings, Inc. (ONVO)

[ClearThinker]

I've never seen a press release where the CEO poo-poo's his own company.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/open-letter-organovo-shareholders-organovo-130000809.html

"Organovo’s plummeting fortunes clearly are no failure of the technology. I’m sure you felt the effects of many months of feeble investor engagement and communication, and the stock price surely did. "


"My company, Viscient Biosciences, has taken bioprinting to entirely new levels...."

and

"For Viscient Biosciences, having investment funds with >$4 billion under management as supporters is a huge positive..."

This is nothing short of crapping on your investors.

This is how a court or a judge would look at it:

You (Murphy) create a company, get investment and take it public. For whatever reason, while you were at the helm, the ship started taking on water. It may sink. Instead of fixing problems, you jump ship and create a new company.

Fair enough, but the investors that get stuck with huge losses have no choice but to watch their investment sink. And while this is happening, you (Murphy) gloat over your new firm in a public press release, ridiculing the former company, the management and the investors?

I thought ONVO was a bit early for its time, but a highly innovative idea. The FDA would have never approved this until at least 10+ years passed. That held me back in 2014 from investing.

Nevertheless, Mr. Murphy, you have harmed your own reputation for any future investors to trust you. Any VC firm will think, "If he did that to ONVO, what will he do to us if the investment doesn't work out?"

As an investor, I always review board members and senior management. I will steer well clear of any company you are involved with, regardless of the financials.


How dumb was that press release? Any investor can now sue the pants off of Murphy for that press release. Organovo itself can sue Murphy. Murphy now ends up taking now the blame for what he accuses others of. Murphy's hubris makes him his own worst enemy.

And the PR Agency, Little Dog Communications Inc., WHAT WERE THEY THINKING WHEN THEY SIGNED OFF ON THAT? Did Jessica Yingling read what they published? Do they have any sense of both the fiscal and reputational impact such a press release has? Not only does it harm ONVO, but it shows Murphy's ignorance, incompetence, and lack of ethical judgement. I also reflects the same to Little Dog Communications, Inc.. Little Dog seriously hurt their own reputation as a PR Firm. Any biotech firm with a brain would stay well clear from Little Dog going forward.

A real P.R. agency worth its salt would call the client and say:

"Wait a second. I know what you want to do, but this will backfire. Look at the liability you will generate here. What will your former investors think of you? You may motivate them to sue you. Think of what the SEC can do. You are painting a picture that at some time you were out to harm your own firm. That's a conflict of interest. Its generally not covered by insurance. Judgements on that are never light, and they can ruin you financially. The press release will end up becoming "Exhibit A" in court. Lets either write this differently, or better yet, not say anything at all to the public."

That's what a real PR firm would do. Little Dog Communications and Ken Murphy are highly incompetent.