Lot 78, Inc. (OTCMKTS:LOTE) Starts PR Self-Promotion Afresh in 2014

It is strange when an old acquaintance of a stock resurfaces- especially one with a turbulent history. Now, we are seeing Lot 78, Inc. (OTCMKTS:LOTE) surge up 70%, not a huge surprise, given its extremely low positions at five cents. LOTE grew to $0.091 on buying volumes of $1.23 million, as the company churned out PR messages for the first time since September, apparently preparing for a new splash in 2014.

To recall, LOTE is a trendy apparel company that showed promise, but last summer was disproportionately inflated by paid promotions via email or paper. This time, LOTE is not seeing any emails, and the revival was unexpected, as LOTE was almost constantly pressured down in the past months.

But these are the biggest buying volumes since the summer, and while the end of the week will probably cause profit-taking, LOTE looks like a potential mover.

The most recent news from the company is that it would be placing its products more widely in the Harvey Nichols boutique. So far, LOTE is a rather limited brand, due to its high-end prices and small-scale collections.

But LOTE seems to be preparing for expansion, though we cannot know in time what its results show, since this pink sheet is still offering limited information.

Still, a recent 8-K reveals that LOTE reached an agreement that Bibby Trade Services Limited should buy some of the debts of the company. Now, LOTE has a factoring agreement allowing it access to $984,000 for the purposes of general expansion. We will have to wait and see if this translates at least to a short-term gain in the stock price.

LOTE has had even stronger spikes back in September, only to wipe out the gains in the next few days. So we recommend caution with this ticker, which may go down to an even lower range. LOTE has shed nearly 60% since its surge in September, most of the fall made in an extremely dramatic way.

Another mover that resembles LOTE is the Alkaline Water Co., Inc. (OTCBB:WTER), a seller of an almost boutique product that shot upward on a loud promotional campaign. The company also looked promising, before it slid down two-thirds to drift around the 30-cent level.

Let’s see what happens to an active paper mailer: that of Fresh Healthy Vending International, Inc. (OTCMKTS:VEND). The ticker doubled in price in the last month, breaking the $3 level, only to correct and settle at $2.67 with a small gain on Wednesday. But for VEND, this looks like the beginning of the end, and we are expecting to see worse days.

If you still see something in LOTE, keep in mind that the low price is not a rock-bottom, and may continue to slide, wiping out investments further.