My 'handicapping' is based on years of playing, observing stocks and scouring their balance sheets.
I have seen the 'Trojan Horse' method, having Authorised preferred shares waiting to be used when the insiders want to 'cash out'many, many times. These tactics are used mainly in companies that don't have cash flows and insiders that have large debts that the company owes them: like IPIX.
The latest one I've watched up close is ACRL which has gone from 50 cents a share to 1/10 of a cent per share using this method in seven months on extraordinary volumes. A classic example of the 'death spiral.'
Management will tell you that this Trojan Horse is there to block takeover bids? Really? Hmmnnn. If the takeover bid is done by a company that enjoys cash flows, gives an attractive price and IPIX shareholders get the new stronger stock what is wrong with that picture?
Management wants control and worries much more about their own pocketbooks than their own shareholder economic interests.
Simple solution: shareholders petition management to terminate the authorised preferred shares. Management complies. In this fashion, the Death Spiral risk is completely removed from the equation.
Hope that helps.
In my opinion