Jeffery Citron must think that Vonage (VG) is a buy. He is spending $1.26 million of his own money to buy shares in his company. The New York Post reports that he bought shares on August 4 at $6.41 to $6.90 a share. As we all know how poorly the company stock has done since its IPO a few months ago, this would seem like a confidence inspiring move. Or is there something else?
7 thoughts on “Citron’s Buyback Moment”
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He ought to check out the web and see what customers are saying about his acquisition. Its not pretty.
Definitely not a buy.
Vonage is the roach motel of phone companies. They have sales people working around the clock, but intentionally don’t put their customer service extension in the menu on their phone system. This is dishonest and I decide not to do further business with them.
Unfortunately, they won’t or can’t cancel the number transfer. I contact Qwest to see if they can stop it and at first they think so, but eventually they say no, but let it go through and in a week they can request it back. So we do. This leaves me without the ability to receive calls for over 3 weeks. I tell the reps at Vonage that I want my number transfer cancelled and plan to cancel service – they warn me not to cancel until the number safely returns to Qwest. Qwest gives me the same advice.
It takes 20 days for a number to transfer – so this entire fiasco is over 40 days long. Cleverly, Vonage provides a 30 day money back guarantee. Criminal.
I learn this last fact when phoning to cancel my Vonage “service” (which never worked) and am told that 1) I’m over the 30 days to I have to pay $30 in cancellation fees and 2) I am charged an additional $50 for hardware that I bought up front for $89 in the first place and that failed within days of power up and 3) am told that they won’t even replace the dead hardware (although the rather smug-bitchy rep in cancellations is pleased to tell me that “if you had stayed we’d replace it but since you’re cancelling you’re out of luck”).
Clearly he’s not acting on insider information. That would violate the law and we know that he always stays square with the SEC.
right, that is pretty obvious. he is not trying to run afoul of SEC again.
Om, kidding right? I believe he is long roughly 50m shares. This is a headline, and a headfake. More disingenious behavior from a miserable bastard. This guy has never let anyone/thing get between him and a buck. If the business was looking up he would have bought 10m shares. And i think Jake is being scarastic, no?
If anyone even thinks of investing in this company, they should read the 2003 SEC Complaint against Citron here: http://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/comp17929.htm
It’s absolutely breathtaking.
yawn…
This PR moment for vonage and citron is akin to an average person buying 100 bux worth of powerball tikcets. He’s throwing good money after bad on a loosing bet striclty for show…
J. Sanford Miller, a Vonage director just completed the purchase of $1.5 million of Vonage shares on the open market through his LP on or about 8/15/2006 (according to SEC filings).
This is cooincident with the Panero resignation, though probably not related. I’m wondering if Citron wants all his director’s to publicly double down?
You know what they say on wall street about doubling down!