How to legally damage a company and profit from it!

I appreciate that this is a well worn conversation about how the stock market permits individuals and organisations to short sell publicly listed companies. I feel the need to again discuss this practice after watching the damage done to Carnarvon Petroleum (and many others) over an extended period of time. The compulsive requirement to constantly make money in rising and falling markets is a greedy and short sighted practice, especially in regards to small to mid cap companies. It is penalising them for being successful and CVN is a very good example. Here we have a very well run business that has, in conjunction with others, discovered an amazing new oil/gas province in Australia. CVN has tirelessly and successfully progressed this discovery which should, by any standard, enable them to grow into mid/large energy business. Yet we find ourselves not just stagnant, but less valuable with every positive initiative that the company has successfully completed.

Now I know this is all common knowledge however, it is time that those responsible for these investment practices be held to account for the damage that they are doing. You would think that as a company delivers material outcomes in accordance with their strategic plans that the value of that company should increase. For small cap companies, in particular, these value increments enable these businesses to fund future investments with less dilution which as a shareholder is very important. CVN's cash management skills are to be commended as are the many good decisions the company has made over the years.

For the record stock markets were created to:

"A stock market is a public market where people can buy and sell shares on disallowed. The stocks, also known as equities, represent ownership in the company.Stock markets have existed for centuries. The oldest stock exchange was started in Belgium back in 1531. The brokers and moneylenders used to meet there to deal with the businesses. However, they never used actual stocks but traded in promissory notes and bonds. Later, the Amsterdam Stock Exchange was established in 1602 by the Dutch East India Company and regarded as the first real stock exchange.Since its inception, stock markets have served many purposes, the most important being to provide companies with a source to raise capital for investment and expansion."

It is a sad reflection of where the investment markets have reached where individual profits are more important than nourishing the lifeblood that actually make those profits possible.

As a long term Carnarvon shareholder (20 years) I appreciate everything that the company has achieved. We are on the cusp of something special and it is very aggravating watching the constant share price manipulation that seems never ending.

Just my 10 cents worth