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Sold Short: Uncovering Deception in the Markets
A revealing expose by one of today's most successful and controversial speculators
Short-selling, or betting on a drop in the price of a stock, has been described by its many opponents as everything from shady to downright evil. And no one today personifies the practice better than short-seller extraordinaire Manuel Asensio. Though he has been branded in the press as a market saboteur, Asensio staunchly defends his practices, claiming that, above all, he is out to expose rampant fraud being perpetrated by unscrupulous stock promoters. Is Asensio a "Minion of Satan" as they say in the online chat rooms, or is he really a misunderstood guardian angel of free market capitalism? In this tell-all account, Asensio offers readers a lively narrative, peppered with unforgettable anecdotes such as the story of why he shorted Diana, General Nutrition, Solv-Ex, Turbodyne, and many other high-profile stocks. And he arms investors with proven techniques for reducing the inherent risks of short-selling while maximizing returns. Clearly, Asensio invites both praise and criticism, but his methodology works, and Sold Short is a compelling and fascinating read about this often mysterious side of the market--and one of the most controversial individuals behind it.
Manuel Asensio (New York, NY) is founder and Chairman of Asensio & Co., Inc. He has over twenty years of corporate finance and research experience. He has been featured in Business Week, the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Fortune, Forbes, Worth, the New York Times, New York magazine, and the New Republic, among other leading national and international publications.
Short-selling, or betting on a drop in the price of a stock, has been described by its many opponents as everything from shady to downright evil. And no one today personifies the practice better than short-seller extraordinaire Manuel Asensio. Though he has been branded in the press as a market saboteur, Asensio staunchly defends his practices, claiming that, above all, he is out to expose rampant fraud being perpetrated by unscrupulous stock promoters. Is Asensio a "Minion of Satan" as they say in the online chat rooms, or is he really a misunderstood guardian angel of free market capitalism? In this tell-all account, Asensio offers readers a lively narrative, peppered with unforgettable anecdotes such as the story of why he shorted Diana, General Nutrition, Solv-Ex, Turbodyne, and many other high-profile stocks. And he arms investors with proven techniques for reducing the inherent risks of short-selling while maximizing returns. Clearly, Asensio invites both praise and criticism, but his methodology works, and Sold Short is a compelling and fascinating read about this often mysterious side of the market--and one of the most controversial individuals behind it.
Manuel Asensio (New York, NY) is founder and Chairman of Asensio & Co., Inc. He has over twenty years of corporate finance and research experience. He has been featured in Business Week, the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Fortune, Forbes, Worth, the New York Times, New York magazine, and the New Republic, among other leading national and international publications.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published April 15, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 13, 2021
An extremely interesting book that tells both of deception in the markets but also how to take advantage of it
February 9, 2024
Sold Short Author - Manuel Asensio
Manuel Asensio is widely recognized as a pioneer in activist short selling. His career in the field began after his graduation from Harvard when he started proprietary trading and eventually established Boca Raton Investment Corp in 1982 as his own trading firm. In 1992, Asensio furthered his influence in the industry by founding Asensio & Company, a FINRA and SEC registered investment firm. Notably, in January 1996, ACO made history by becoming the nation’s first registered investment firm to publish an investigative short selling report on its website, marking the first instance of a securities firm issuing a Strong Sell report.
Book Summary
Asensio recounts his experiences as a short seller, uncovering fraud and manipulation in publicly traded companies. He provides an inside look at short selling and argues it is a way to expose corporate deception. Asensio helped popularize short selling and argued it could be used to uncover corporate misconduct.
His short selling research and reports have proven controversial. While some argue it can uncover corporate misconduct, others blame short sellers like Asensio for negatively impacting stock prices. His aggressive and vocal short selling strategies have resulted in numerous lawsuits against him over the years. However, he has yet to lose a monetary judgment.
Anatomy of a Stock Promotion
“A stock promotion is like a disease. And just as a disease can be transmitted in many different ways, there are many different kinds of stock promotions. But, like a disease, there are typical symptoms that let you know the patient is unwell. Here are some of those symptoms.”
The underwriters of the initial public offering have a tainted reputation.
Promoters of the company and others receiving private, below-market shares and warrants have been involved in other stock promotions, often in unrelated businesses.
The product is often in a sexy, hot field with hard-to-quantify, hard-to-understand performance specifications.
If made available for independent scrutiny, the product could easily be proven to be of lesser value than claimed. But any tests or trials regarding the product are delayed beyond reasonable expectation, and results are never disclosed completely and precisely.
The company creates new stock shares on an ongoing basis. Insiders buy these shares directly from the company at below-market prices. Often the increase in shares outstanding coincides with press releases containing claims that are false or misleading. The company then applies to the SEC to register those shares for its recipients so they might freely sell the shares without further disclosure.
No analyst is "covering" the company. Or the market maker, IPO underwriter (often one and the same) and compensated others are the only "analysts" covering the company. These analysts rate the company's stock a strong buy. No matter how damaging the news about a company, these analysts will simply say the stock has "overcorrected" and is "undervalued," or will blame short sellers for unfairly driving down the stock price.
The market in the stock is tightly controlled. Borrowing shares to short is difficult.
The company changes auditors, or its auditor is unknown. (Even if the company's auditor is one of the Big Six, however, this is by no means a guarantee of a squeaky-clean audit—far from it.)
CONTINUE READING MY BOOK SUMMARY & REVIEW: https://kriminiltrading.com/blogs/mus...
Manuel Asensio is widely recognized as a pioneer in activist short selling. His career in the field began after his graduation from Harvard when he started proprietary trading and eventually established Boca Raton Investment Corp in 1982 as his own trading firm. In 1992, Asensio furthered his influence in the industry by founding Asensio & Company, a FINRA and SEC registered investment firm. Notably, in January 1996, ACO made history by becoming the nation’s first registered investment firm to publish an investigative short selling report on its website, marking the first instance of a securities firm issuing a Strong Sell report.
Book Summary
Asensio recounts his experiences as a short seller, uncovering fraud and manipulation in publicly traded companies. He provides an inside look at short selling and argues it is a way to expose corporate deception. Asensio helped popularize short selling and argued it could be used to uncover corporate misconduct.
His short selling research and reports have proven controversial. While some argue it can uncover corporate misconduct, others blame short sellers like Asensio for negatively impacting stock prices. His aggressive and vocal short selling strategies have resulted in numerous lawsuits against him over the years. However, he has yet to lose a monetary judgment.
Anatomy of a Stock Promotion
“A stock promotion is like a disease. And just as a disease can be transmitted in many different ways, there are many different kinds of stock promotions. But, like a disease, there are typical symptoms that let you know the patient is unwell. Here are some of those symptoms.”
The underwriters of the initial public offering have a tainted reputation.
Promoters of the company and others receiving private, below-market shares and warrants have been involved in other stock promotions, often in unrelated businesses.
The product is often in a sexy, hot field with hard-to-quantify, hard-to-understand performance specifications.
If made available for independent scrutiny, the product could easily be proven to be of lesser value than claimed. But any tests or trials regarding the product are delayed beyond reasonable expectation, and results are never disclosed completely and precisely.
The company creates new stock shares on an ongoing basis. Insiders buy these shares directly from the company at below-market prices. Often the increase in shares outstanding coincides with press releases containing claims that are false or misleading. The company then applies to the SEC to register those shares for its recipients so they might freely sell the shares without further disclosure.
No analyst is "covering" the company. Or the market maker, IPO underwriter (often one and the same) and compensated others are the only "analysts" covering the company. These analysts rate the company's stock a strong buy. No matter how damaging the news about a company, these analysts will simply say the stock has "overcorrected" and is "undervalued," or will blame short sellers for unfairly driving down the stock price.
The market in the stock is tightly controlled. Borrowing shares to short is difficult.
The company changes auditors, or its auditor is unknown. (Even if the company's auditor is one of the Big Six, however, this is by no means a guarantee of a squeaky-clean audit—far from it.)
CONTINUE READING MY BOOK SUMMARY & REVIEW: https://kriminiltrading.com/blogs/mus...
November 14, 2011
Not worth the time to read it. Author is full of self-important puffery. Nothing explicitly useful in helping to determine stocks to short.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews