"Not every drop in price is manipulation"
Perhaps not every drop in price is due to manipulation but at least 90% of them actually are in today's markets. In fact, I think even 90% of the upsides are due to manipulation also!
The price of an equity depends partly on real supply and demand and partly on perception and manipulation. In the distant past, supply and demand may have been the main determining factors but with the advent of electronic trading worldwide and the many hedgies that have sprung about, perception and manipulation have become the key determining factors as to how a stock will behave on a day to day basis. These sharks are there for one purpose and one purpose only: manipulate the stock prices and usurp as much as you can from the retail investor. In the very long-term, some companies with a strong business plan and execution will probably survive these manipulation schemes but many will not and will succumb to financing issues that were generated artificially by the hedgies who are overwhelming the trading these days...
The fact that the majority of the trades on wall-street (over 80% I believe) are done by hedge funds is a testimony to what I said above... Anyone that thinks that manipulation is not rampant on wall-street currently and the dominant factor in stock prices, especially in small biotechs, probably still believes in the tooth fairy...
