Patrick Byrne, president of Salt Lake-based online closeout retailer Overstock.com, on Friday issued a statement countering allegations by some hedge-fund managers that the company publishes inaccurate list-price information on its Web site.
Byrne said the hedge fund's statements "are absolutely and verifiably untrue."
He said the statements were made to major media outlets, including Business Week, by an anonymous hedge fund that "has sought to make use of the public media in its financial strategy, rather than seeking the truth by making direct inquiry to us."
Byrne's statement listed the company's pricing policy, and he said this was "the second time in as many months that we have seen a hedge fund 'tip off' a reporter when our stock is performing well in an attempt to cause our stock price to fall."