The Short Selling Ban: Is CVS a Financial?

So, when did CVS (CVS) become classified as a financial?

The SEC has added CVS to the "short selling ban" that was initially restricted to financial companies. The reason? CVS, one of the biggest US drugstore groups, said on Thursday it was added to the list because it ran Caremark, the prescription benefit manager.

This is just insane. Just ban short selling altogether. The rules are being changed on a daily basis. If investors or traders do not know from day to day what the rules are, they just will not do anything. Why place a bet when the government can come in tomorrow and wipe out your position?

This comes just after SEC Commish Chris Cox asked to regulate the credit default market. If there is a god in heaven that request will be declined until he is replaced. Either regulate or don't, whatever, but you just cannot "make it up as you go along". No one benefits when it gets done that way.

Disclosure: None

Comments

[apppro:]

At this point in time, EVERYTHING is a financial and should be protected agaisnt narcissistic short sellers. It's enough already. Last nite I even heard a report that Citi was coming up with a NEW way to short stocks to skirt the current restrictions. Outrageous!
ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!
#4. Implement a Windfall Capital Gains Tax on shorts sales retroactive to 01/01/08 to help pay for this mess.

2008 Sep 26 07:18 AM

[wetwillie:]

You need to add Sears Holdings and Vale Jewelers to your list. Short selling is needed to provide balance and price discovery (not naked short selling though) in the market. Artificial protection never works in the end.

2008 Sep 26 08:31 AM

[OldNavySailor:]

How about this:

Foreign based companies have their hand reaching into the U.S. Treasury as well
(see short selling ban list published in theWashington Post at www.marketwatch.com/Ne...={2A9A51F5-621E-47F8-8... ):

1. Bermuda

ARCH CAPITAL GROUP LTD NEW,
ARGO GROUP INTL HLDGS LTD,
ASSURED GUARANTY LTD,
ASPEN INSURANCE HOLDINGS LTD
ALLIED WORLD ASSUR CO HLD
AXIS CAPITAL HOLDINGS LTD
I P C HOLDINGS LTD

2. France

AXA UAP - a life insurance company with a market capitalization of 73.1 billion.

3. Canada

BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA
MANULIFE FINANCIAL CORP
SUN LIFE FINANCIAL INC

4. Chili

CORPBANCA

5. China

CHINA LIFE INSURANCE CO LTD

6. Ireland

ALLIED IRISH BANKS PLC

7. Israel

ELBIT IMAGING LTD - a property management company. What does this have to do with finance?

8. Netherlands

AEGON N V

9. Panama

BANCO LATINOAMERICANO DE EXP SA

10. Switzerland

ACE LTD

11. United Kingdom

BARCLAYS PLC
PRUDENTIAL PLC

12. Germany

DEUTSCHE BANK AG

This will be the greatest robbery put upon the American people since the inaction of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913!

2008 Sep 26 01:34 PM

[Urbane Gori...:]

I see the need to eliminate naked shorts... But a blanket ban on select companies is just absurd. What happened to the Republican mantra "let the market decide"... And who is selecting these companies? There is a whole short list that includes many valuable companies that also deserve protection, such as Cal-Maine (CALM)... why are they not included? GE and CVS.... Please! My guess... lobbyists.

Welcome to the Grand Guignol!

jegan ;-)

2008 Sep 26 01:53 PM

[Brighteyes:]

If you eliminate Cox, where in the world would we ever find a sane, honest, Accounting Genius with enough guts to do something other than make excuses for failures and using the cliche, "oh ya, we're working on that."

2008 Sep 30 03:30 PM