Short Stories: NovaStar's 66-bagger

Filed under: Short stories, Wachovia Corp (WB), NovaStar Financial (NFI)Although short selling -- the practice of selling borrowed shares with the hope of repaying the loan by buying back the shares at a lower price -- goes against the American belief that stocks always go up, I have long been fascinated with it. Short Stories discusses what works, what doesn't, and what some of the leading lights in shorting stocks think about its opportunities and threats. I describe possible short trades and seek your comments and questions for story ideas. I don't offer any investment advice and I don't trade on any of the posts I write. Last December, I urged investors to consider selling short shares of NovaStar Financial (NYSE: NFI) when they could be had for $116 a share. And in August, I asked whe