Shopping.com Cooperating

Shopping.com Chief Executive Robert J. McNulty said Wednesday that the online retailer is “cooperating fully” with a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into the trading of its stock.

McNulty, in a three-paragraph statement, also said he “fully expects” the company’s shares to resume trading when the 10-day ban expires April 6. The SEC implemented the trading ban Tuesday, saying it was looking into possible market manipulation of the stock.

Some traders are blaming Waldron & Co., an Irvine brokerage firm, for inflating the money-losing company’s stock and keeping it aloft. Waldron officials blame traders who are unsuccessfully shorting the stock--betting the price would drop.

McNulty said the company has fully complied with all SEC regulations since going public last November and continues to focus on expanding its operations, including opening a European office.

Before Tuesday’s trading ban, Shopping.com’s shares traded on the over-the-counter bulletin board. They closed Monday at $22.25, down $6.50. The company, which has never turned a profit, went public at $9 a share and saw its stock surge to $31.13 earlier this month.