Yes my financial exposure would be zero, but I would still be an owner.
I'm also (probably) an owner of facebook, despite having absolutely no say how it is run, as would be traditional as an owner.
Philosophical discussion aside, it isn't just Facebook that does this, so there would quite a few different stocks to track, which kind of undermines the 'stick it in a tracker' idea.
If you own facebook shares in a tracker and short Facebook, you are neutral, from a share price exposure point of view. I am still the beneficial owner of the shares within the tracker though, it is still hypothetically possible for me to go to a shareholder meeting and vote with that stock. So although I don't have any financial stake in Facebook, I do have some benefits of ownership.
Yes my financial exposure would be zero, but I would still be an owner.
I'm also (probably) an owner of facebook, despite having absolutely no say how it is run, as would be traditional as an owner.
Philosophical discussion aside, it isn't just Facebook that does this, so there would quite a few different stocks to track, which kind of undermines the 'stick it in a tracker' idea.