The wretched truth about
reverse stock splits
By Michael Brush In a last-ditch effort to cling to their listings on the major stock exchanges, many companies such as Lucent Technologies
Pay attention, because these desperation plays, known as reverse stock splits, can signal sharp declines ahead that could wipe out a good part of your wealth. A reverse split is simply a maneuver to get a stock up above $1 and thus free of the danger zone that gets companies booted off an exchange. Managers typically cobble together as many shares as it takes to get one share worth more than $5 to win their reprieve. Though the intentions seem sound, it’s better to look at a reverse split as a flashing red light warning that you may need to kick a stock out of your portfolio. As many as 75% of all stocks wind up trading lower after a reverse split. Investors who failed to sell shares in several reverse splits in just the past few months have seen their holdings get hit by 60% or more in no time, despite the overall market strength. Big losses Internet-strategy consulting firm Razorfish Other companies recently launching reverse splits -- or mulling them – include AT&T Some companies using reverse splits will survive and prosper, of course. But on average, shorting them can bring gains of up to 37%. That’s how much, on average, stocks tend to decline by three years after a reverse split, according to academic studies. (Investors short stocks by borrowing shares, selling them and replacing them later at a lower price.) A good portion of that decline often happens in the first few months. Smaller companies -- or those under $500 million in market capitalization -- tend to do the worst. On average, they fall up to 44% three years after the reverse split, says Crocker Coulson, of the investor relations firm Coffin Communications Group. Reverse splits are harder on Nasdaq companies than those listed on other exchanges. The reverse split jinx Why do stocks usually sink after reverse splits? The answer is simple. “A stock isn’t trading under a dollar unless it is pretty close to bankruptcy or it has some other serious troubles,” says Charles Jones, who teaches finance at Columbia Business School. “And that is not changed by a reverse split.” Put another way, reverse splits are like a message from management that the underlying business trends are so rotten, they won’t be enough to get the stock price up to snuff. To be sure, companies cite lots of good reasons to do reverse splits, beyond the need to meet listing requirements. Many fund managers shun stocks under $5 because they appear too speculative. Investors can’t use margin to buy stocks under $5. And Wall Street brokerages are reluctant to push stocks down in this trading range. All of these factors limit demand. What’s more, a lot of companies simply have too much stock outstanding after the excesses of the market bubble days when they created huge numbers of shares to support stock option bonanzas and pointless acquisitions. “We are still recovering from the great binge of the late 1990s,” says Coulson. The pitfalls of shorting reverse splits Even though 75% of reverse splits end up declining, it is not as easy making money shorting them as you might think. “The 25% that go up can go up so much they wipe you out,” says Andrew Lo, a finance professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management. For example, j2 Global Communications Avoid shorting companies whose prospects improved around the time of the reverse split. Interstate Hotels and Resorts You also have to consider the fundamentals for a company’s sector, of course. Lucent, which is asking shareholders for permission to do a reverse split because its shares are hovering dangerously close to the $1 mark, believes it will be profitable next year. But if overcapacity and weak demand for telecom equipment continue to plague the sector, Lucent shares will be a good short if it goes through with a reverse split that would take shares back up above $15. Avoid shorting the reverse split stocks with decent financial strength. Ethyl Sure enough, Ethyl -- which has no coverage by Wall Street analysts -- recently tacked on a short-killing 50% when it announced good quarterly results. “Most of the penny stocks that do reverse splits have cash flow problems,” says David Fiorenza, finance chief for the company. “But we make stuff and sell stuff and we have good cash flow.” The company is also around 30% owned by insiders, another sign of strength to watch for. Avoid shorting companies doing a reverse split for appearances. After AT&T spins out its broadband business to Comcast Other tips Remember that reverse stock splits that don’t take a company’s shares above $5 may be difficult to short, because it’s often hard to short stocks below $5. Most reverse splits, however, do move shares back above $5. Typically the less dramatic reverse splits -- like a 1-for-2 swap -- don’t suffer as much. If you are hunting for reverse splits to short, look for cases where massive changes are needed to get a stock up to a respectable price level, like Palm’s conversion of 20 shares into one share. Despite some exceptions, the bottom line is that most reverse splits spell trouble because they’re simply cosmetic changes that do nothing to reverse ugly trends at a company. Perhaps Yogi Berra put it best. When asked once how he wanted his pizza cut, he quipped: "You'd better make it four. I don't think I can eat six pieces." |
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At the time of publication, Michael Brush did not own or control shares in any of the companies listed in this column. |