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GT Advanced’s recent trading activity under investigation by SEC following bankruptcy filing

GT Advanced disclosed on Thursday that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking information about the sapphire glass maker’s trading activity since January 2013 after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month. GT Advanced’s latest Form 8-K report claims that the company is fully cooperating with the SEC during its investigation.

It was previously reported that GT Advanced CEO Thomas Gutierrez unloaded all of his stock in the company in a sale just one day before the iPhone 6 was unveiled. For several months leading up to the iPhone 6 launch, it was widely believed that Apple would use sapphire crystal glass for its latest smartphones, but that rumor failed to materialize.

Gutierrez netted about $160,000 from the sales of his stock, while GT Advanced COO Daniel Squiller also sold $1.2 million of stock in May and “set up a plan under which he sold another $750,000 of shares over ensuing months before the company filed for bankruptcy.”

GT Advanced recently reached an agreement in which it will repay Apple a $439 million settlement based on cash earned by selling its Advanced Sapphire Furnaces (ASFs). That agreement was recently amended to allow for GT Advanced’s declaration to be made public information, revealing that Apple receives up to $290,000 per furnace sold.

The related Form 8-K is embedded below:

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Comments

  1. jacosta45 - 9 years ago

    I was wondering when the SEC would start looking into this…

  2. eim23x - 9 years ago

    The exec will be going to jail or fined for criminal acts. another white collar crime.

    • Probably not. Insider trading has very specific rules/requirements to be met. None of the reported facts in the bankruptcy so far indicate that these sales were based on advanced knowledge of the bankruptcy.

      There may be other facts we don’t know about to prove insider trading, but at this time, what’s public does not indicate this.

      • herb02135go - 9 years ago

        My money is in nothing happening

      • herb02135go - 9 years ago

        My money is on nothing happening.

      • Rick Lomeli - 9 years ago

        My Money is on herb02135go is an ass and a Troller!