Finra Bars Former Wells Fargo Broker for Insider Trading (InvestmentNews.com)
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. has barred Joseph Pratt, who most recently was a broker at Stifel Nicolaus in Conshohocken, Pa., for trading insider information dealing with biopharmaceutical clinical trials in 2013 and 2014. The findings stated that although Mr. Pratt received approval to make a one-time personal investment in a speculative company, he did not provide his firm at the time – Wells Fargo Advisors – with prior written notice. He also failed to provide prior written notice or obtain approval for his investments of $119,000 in shares of the company away from the firm.
Former Investment Banker Convicted In Second Insider Trading Trial (Forbes)
Sean Stewart’s insider trading trial took a bit over a week in the Southern District of New York, a case that almost did not happen. After just an hour of deliberations, the jury came back with a verdict “guilty.” Sean was first convicted of insider trading in February 2017. The government’s case was based on an FBI recorded conversation between Robert Stewart, Sean’s father, and an informant, Richard Cunniffe. Cunniffe had been receiving information from Robert Stewart that was derived from conversations with Sean, who did merger transaction work at Perella Weinberg Partners.
Former PetMed Executive Settles Insider Trading Lawsuit (BizJournals.com)
A former executive for Delray Beach-based PetMed Express agreed to a settlement without admitting or denying allegations. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Wednesday that James Irvin agreed to pay more than $500,000 in damages without admitting or denying guilt on charges that he used confidential information about the company’s finances to make stock trades.
The SVP of LaZBoy Incorporated is Exercising Options (Analyst Ratings)
Today it was reported that the SVP of LaZBoy Incorporated (LZB), Darrell Dewain Edwards, exercised options to sell 14,820 LZB shares at $9.35 a share, for a total transaction value of $495.3K. Following Darrell Dewain Edwards’ last LZB Sell transaction on June 17, 2015, the stock climbed by 8.9%.
CFTC Charges Former Head of International Binary Options Scheme with $10 Million Fraud (HedgeCo.net)
(HedgeCo.Net) The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, charging Jared J. Davis of Ohio with fraud relating to a global binary options business he created and operated. The complaint charges that from at least July 2012 through at least June 2016, Davis fraudulently solicited and accepted at least $10 million from customers in the United States and elsewhere to trade off-exchange binary options on commodities and foreign currencies (forex), among other things. As alleged in the complaint, Davis executed his unlawful scheme through internet marketing campaigns, various websites, and call centers using trade names such as Option Mint, Option King, and Option Queen.
