nemo - IMM. there seems to be a credibility issue with the guy that wrote that report you posted on IMM. the following article appeared in monday's issue of the new york post newspaper.
OTC STOCK SINKER HIDES ON THE WEB
By BEN SILVERMAN
January 19, 2004 --
DotcomScoop.com
IN the Wild West of the over-the-counter stock market, there is one question about the mysterious man behind StockLemon.com that needs to be answered: Does he wear a black hat or a white hat?
"He takes advantage of little investors and reports things that are blatantly not true," Angelo Tullo, the chief executive of YP.Net, told The Post. "We're hunting him down."
YP.Net may have good reason to hunt down the man simply known as StockLemon Guy.
After StockLemon published a Jan. 8 report on the Mesa, Ariz., online yellow pages provider, its stock plunged more than 30 percent on 20 times the average volume - just a day after its shares had closed at an all-time high.
YP.Net promptly issued a press release, saying it suspected that StockLemon may have profited from the drop and claimed the Web site's report on it was false.
A day later, YP.Net filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona against StockLemon.com, alleging that the Internet publication "wantonly published false and defamatory statements about the company."
StockLemon Guy refutes the allegations and says that, although he published a "mea culpa" that corrected some information, he stands by his report.
"StockLemon is a good service because it's the only thing that gives [the OTC market] balance," said StockLemon Guy, who refused to identify himself. "These companies can say anything they want, and we have to take it as it is [because there's no oversight on the OTC]."
StockLemon Guy positions himself as a combination of a savvy investor and a watchdog. He makes no bones about the fact that he profits from his reports, which almost always sink virtually unknown, thinly traded stocks.
About 40 companies have felt the sting of his reports, and more than once it has been suggested that StockLemon Guy is in cahoots with hedge funds looking for short opportunities.
"That's the craziest thing I've ever heard - [that] it's a grand conspiracy. What hedge fund is going to short a $2 stock? I strongly deny [that I have association with hedge funds]," StockLemon Guy said.
Asked to identify himself, StockLemon Guy, who claims to have about 2,000 newsletter readers, refused to do so. He told The Post that he's a stay-at-home dad who lives on the West Coast and worries about his family's safety.
Trying to glean his identity in traditional ways is a lost cause. Legal action may be the only way to track him down.
"I kind of make myself open to lawsuits," he said. "I don't necessarily try to hide who I am. It's just important to keep the focus on the message, not the messenger. But you can find me if you sue me."
That's just what YP.Net is doing. And it may be up to a judge or jury to decide whether StockLemon Guy is a short-selling manipulator or a savvy businessman out to protect individual investors.
AI
