“In early morning trading, shares of Apple dropped down to about $437 a share, the lowest Apple has traded at in over a year. Naturally, Apple shares tanked despite reports that domestic demand for iMacs have surged nearly 32% year-over-year,” Yoni Heisler writes for Network World. “But a curious thing happened just about three hours into the trading day. Hedge fund manager Doug Kass put out a tweet teasing the idea that Apple was going to announce a stock split on Wednesday during the company’s shareholder meeting.”
“Surprise, surprise: it didn’t take long for shares of Apple to recover, eventually closing out at $448.97, up $6.17 for the day,” Heisler writes. “And here’s where things get fishy. Shortly thereafter, with Apple trading at $449, Kass put out another tweet saying that it’s about time he sell off some of his Apple shares.”
Heisler writes, “1 hour later Kass tweeted out that he was continuing to “pare back” as the rumor – which he effectively tweeted into existence – was baseless. How delightfully convenient. Now Kass writes that he sold off shares of Apple after ostensibly realizing that Apple ‘would require a shareholder vote to split the stock.’ Doesn’t it seem strange that Kass, who touts himself as a ‘legendary hedge fund manager’ on his website, would have forgotten this oh-so-important factoid?”
Much more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The SEC has its case laid out for it on a silver platter should it ever awaken.
If you would like to lodge a complaint about fraud or wrongdoing involving potential violations of U.S. securities laws, you can do so online with the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission here.
Related articles:
Can the U.S. SEC prosecute Doug Kass over Apple stock split rumor? – February 27, 2013
Rotten rumors of impossible Apple stock split helps fund manager Kass clear profits – February 26, 2013
Apple stock split rumor pushes shares higher – February 26, 2013
Doug Kass: Apple to announce stock split on Wednesday – February 26, 2013
So, who is going to inform the SEC of this miss-deed? And others I presume?
it is funny how people from inside a company are required to make public IN ADVANCE their intention to buy or sell stock from their own company.
In contrast, hedge fund managers apparently get away with setting up stock manipulating schemes IN ADVANCE, then reap the profits.
Leeches, that’s what they are. At the expense of long time investors and of the companies actually produce wealth for the economy.
And the SEC is looking the other way.
Well, I actually did file a complaint using MDN’s link above. Now I’ll probably get put on a list and investigated out the wazoo.
We need to find someone who actually lost money during this latest obvious manipulation by Mr. Kass and then find an attorney to sue him. Without a doubt he would settle or get caught by his own game.
No, you don’t. It is assumed that some traders took action THEY WOULD NOT HAVE, had the rumor not been created/spread.
Agreed, where the flip is the public face of the SEC, the public agency that the taxpayers support? I wonder that the SEC doesn’t comment publicly on wrongful actions so obviously affective to the economy and something so impacting to the most valuable company in the world. We must find a way to demand action NOW.
The case against Kass goes a bit further. As a licensed securities trader it is understood that he has knowledge that goes beyond the average trader. That knowledge would necessarily include a firm’s procedures (as defined by its charter) for issuing more shares, or splitting existing shares.
Kass had that knowledge BEFORE he made his initial Tweet. Therefore he knew beforehand that what he was Tweeting was false.
He then acted on the stock’s movement caused by his Tweet, AND PROFITED.
Thee is no way Kass can claim that he didn’t know what Apple’s Charter required in order to split the stock. By definition, as a licensed securities trader, that specializes in AAPL, he had ready access to that information, AND DID NOT AVAIL HIMSELF OF IT, before furthering the rumor. Beyond that, the rumor was not public until he made it so, making him a party to disseminating knowingly false information.
A fine that exceeds his profits by a factor of 3, plus a very public apology would do wonders to stop this kind of bullshit.
Wall Street:
Heads I Win
Tails You Lose
“You may be eligible for a monetary award if the information you submit leads to an SEC action that results in monetary sanctions exceeding $1,000,000.”
Well what are you waiting for?
I am waiting for the news… “A well known Wall Street trader got shot and stabbed multiple with a Post-It note stapled to his head says Manipulate THIS!!”
Of course, violent should not be used in any way to resolve stock manipulation issue. However, there is just excessive bullshits out there which the only victims are regular AAPL investors like us. Sometime one got to say enough is enough. Something has to be done with this stock manipulation bullshit.
Watching Jim Cramer’s interview turns my stomach. The stock market is rigged.
Ah, Einhorn, Kass and the list of amoral hedge fund types goes on and on. As Roger Martin pointed out in his book “Fixing the Game”, hedge funds do nothing to add value. So when one of these POS tell you how they are maximizing value, etc., don’t even hesitate to yell shenanigans! And as far as the SEC goes, forget ever seeing them take any action. That would mean they had to work.
So everyone here made money on his call? I assume everyone sold just as he did? Why not? I mean if you believe him then you should have made money. And if you think he’s a rotten cock sucker then you certainly didn’t lose any money.
Makes me sick also. . . hell I’ll use this web site to fill out the complaint form.
I used to respect Kramer. Now, no way. But at least he is saying what we all know.
Kudos to Kass. manipulating the knee jerk sheep just like apple does. bravo.
The problem is not with people like Doug Kass. The problem is with the system and the assumption that it is based on something integral. Apple should do what it must to exit such a game.
Last summer I made $7,000 on AAPL and bought a top-of-the-line MacBook Retina and a canon camera and expensive lenses. Then I bought an iPhone 5 64-gig and lost $11,000 on AAPL. I thought it would be around February for AAPL to be back up. I guess I’ll have a little more Tim Cook patience. But I’m not buying another product unless it goes back up. And I may not buy any more stocks until the SEC has these hedge-fund criminals under control. They are worse than the predatory lender banksters!