HP Shareholder Lawsuit Adds Insider Trader Allegations

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HP Lawsuit Adds Insider Trading Claims [AP]

Summary: Insider trading allegations have been added to the shareholder lawsuit against Hewlett-Packard following its executive spying scandal. An amended filing claims top brass at HP -- CEO Mark Hurd and seven other executives -- sold over $40 million in stock in the two weeks preceding the scandal with knowledge of the impending disclosure and likely stock drop. According to the lawsuit, this was the busiest period of stock sales by top HP insiders in five years. The suit further claims that the company initiated a $6 billion buyback program in August, "to prevent a free-fall in the Company's stock price as the news of the defendants' misconduct reached the market." HP replied in a statement that the lawsuit was without basis. HP stock has actually risen about 8% since the investigation was first revealed in a regulatory filing.
Related links: HPQ insider transactions • Media coverage: WSJ . Commentary: H-P Naysayers Are Now Being Heard • HP Plays it Cool With Promising Server Technology • Understanding HP's Changing Profit Margins . Conference call transcripts: Hewlett-Packard F4Q06 (Qtr End 10/31/06) .
Potentially impacted stocks and ETFs: Hewlett-Packard (HPQ)

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