Yeah it really does depend on the individual situation. If you look at NEPT (Seeking Alpha) although it is up 18% today, it fell by a lot after the publication of the article. I doubt (and I could be very wrong) that what Ackman says tomorrow will move the stock by much. He will (as Zero Hedge point out) likely just reiterate the thesis put forward by David Einhorn. Late-to-the-party shorts will open positions. Bottom-fishers and shorts lacking conviction will buy. I agree that the weakness in HLF was noticeable since Friday's close. And as I mentioned above, it broke below 42.15 just hours before the report came out.
I like Ackman, he is a smart man. I bet he has dug tons of stuff on the company that Einhorn didn't. He has been researching it for 1 year, I think this will be more than just the ponzi allegation. If it just was just pyramid stuff he would have shorted and announced sooner
shorted 1/4 position isrg 508.18 shorted 1/8 position hlf 35.78 still in 1/2 position aamrq from 0.817
http://www.businessinsider.com/bill-ackman-short-herbalife-2012-12 I have no intention of holding HLF short for the long-run. Pyramid schemes are a bitch to short. I was short PPD a few years back, similar thesis to HLF it seems, most people make no money yet that did not prevent them from finding idiots to buyout the stock at $70(I was in from $40-$50). FTC and other agencies never did anything It's hard to get these agencies to do things that might unemploy a lot of people, even if they would be better off if they did. The pyramid also can keep going for longer than you think, HLF has been around for 30 years. USNA had short reports going back for years, thousands of families got scammed by them yet the pyramid just keeps going(CFO and COO stepped down last week, this could be it for the company but I ain't betting on it) I would like to see his presentation but at first glance I wouldn't short this