[davidkatz]

Actually that can be entirely rational. When shareholders believe that management will run said assets into the ground, they value a company under book (asset) value.

If I have two hundred dollars in my pocket and without you knowing anything else, you might assess my value at two hundred dollars. However, if I had a thousand this morning and I'm standing at a slot machine with no sign of giving up, you'd probably think my $200 are on the way out.