It may not even be the company that is selling shares. They are issuing shares to investors to pay off debt. If the shares are unrestricted what the investor does with those shares is his own business. There is a third party shareholder using shares to pay for promotion to provide a market for those shares he is being issued. He is using more than one stock promotion venue. If the investor sells his shares and receives them incrementally without accumulating a larger than 5% interest at any one time he doesn't even have to register the shares to sell them. Also they are paid at a percentage less than the best available bid over a specified period of time previous to the issuance. Less than you will ever pay.