Overstock raises $40M in stock placement

Troubled online auction house Overstock.com has announced it has raised US$40 million selling around 2.7 million common shares to institutional investors. The money is needed for working capital, including sales, marketing and inventory purchases.

Stifel Nicolaus analyst Scott Devin saw this as a positive event, saying that the cash injection "gives the company enough capital to attempt to fix the core business." The market appears to agree: Overstock shares rose 46c, around 3%, yesterday.