OSTK Appoints Landmark 20th Century Writer to Board

by Mr Juggles

Investors think Overstock (NASDAQ: OSTK) CEO Patrick Byrne is crazy. That’s why his ecommerce company trades at a 0.3x price to sales ratio while Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) sits at 2.3x.

Well, here was an email from the IR from last week: Overstock Appoints James Joyce to the Board of Directors

I am flabbergasted. I mean, when people are questioning your sanity, the ideal response is not to appoint a poet and author from the EARLY 20th century. Is this the man to turn around a troubled internet retailer?

Recommendation: Short OSTK; with James Joyce behind them, it will be almost impossible to invest in OSTK without an accompanying guide to help you understand. This will severely and negatively impact demand from institutional and retail investors alike, who may claim “We love OSTK! We think it’s one of the greatest stocks ever!” but actually do not hold any OSTK in their portfolios.

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POSTED: 01/25/08 10:27 AM
Comment (123)


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Comments

  1. born to lose
    January 25th, 2008 | 1:38 pm

    “Lean, he lay back. Shy, deny thy kindred, the unco guid. Shy supping with the godless, he sneaks the cup. A sire in Ultonian Antrim bade it him. Visits him here on quarter days. Mr Magee, sir, there’s a gentleman to see you. Me? Says he’s your father, sir. Give me my Wordsworth. Enter Magee Mor Matthew, a rugged rough rugheaded kern, in strossers with a buttoned codpiece, his nether stocks bemired with clauber of ten forests, a wand of wilding in his hand.”

    Greatest conference call in history!

  2. Aspiring Mini-Baller
    January 25th, 2008 | 2:53 pm

    This is some of your best analysis. Reminds me of that time the overachieving Jerry Yang won the WSOP.

  3. tima
    January 25th, 2008 | 3:39 pm

    “it will be almost impossible to invest in OSTK without an accompanying guide to help you understand”

    how is this different than the current situation?

  4. Cletus
    January 25th, 2008 | 8:59 pm

    I can’t wait for the guy who explained that it’s a different Jerry Yang. He might clear some of this up.

  5. Matt
    January 25th, 2008 | 10:56 pm

    Can anyone explain to me how it is possible that OSTK is still in business? I’m confused. I thought companies that hemorrhaged cash quarter after quarter for years, had insane executives, fuzzy accounting, ineffective discounting that reduced gross margins to practically nothing, and zero investor confidence went out of business.

    What am I missing here?

  6. bfellows
    January 26th, 2008 | 1:52 am

    Matt… clearly you don’t know how being publicly held works.

    Vonage gets it – they’re winners. And they even do it while getting sued. If anything LoS’s analysis introduces law-suit arbitrage opportunities in the OSTK market.

  7. Inquisitor
    January 26th, 2008 | 2:03 pm

    Fantastic! As a fan of James Joyce I feel I have no choice but to short…

  8. Marty
    January 27th, 2008 | 11:59 pm

    “Mr. Joyce graduated from the University of Oxford with a BA/MA in Jurisprudence and has an MBA from Dartmouth College.”

    Well, with creds like these you’d bloody well expect the bloke to be capable of writing a decent novel, at least.

    So much’s the pity I suppose… but Long on his publisher in any case.