Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital Under Investigation for $14M in Suspicious Trades

Steve Cohen‘s SAC Capital Advisors is under investigation for more than $14 million in suspicious trades according to Bloomberg.

FINRA is Questioning Several Trades SAC Capital Made

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) referred the trades SAC Capital made in 19 companies over the last 10 years, including Genentech Inc. (DNA), ViroPharma Inc. (VPHM) and United Therapeutics Corp. (UTHR).

Bloomberg reports the particular positions and sales “drew Finra’s attention because they were made before market- moving events such as acquisitions and the release of clinical- trial results for new drugs.” Bloomberg notes, “the information isn’t an allegation or proof of securities-law violations. SAC Capital, which oversees about $14 billion, hasn’t been accused of any wrongdoing involving the transactions.” The transactions in question include a $2.3 million profit SAC Capital made in 2007 after buying into UTHR briefly.

SAC Capital has Never Been Charged by the SEC for Wrongdoing

Steve Cohen founded SAC Capital in 1992. Since then, the hedge fund has come under scrutiny on a variety of fronts, largely part of an industry-wide probe into insider trading. “Every day our firm transacts in thousands of securities,” said Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman for SAC Capital. “Given this level of activity, it is not surprising that we would be included in a small percentage of Finra referrals.” He said, “No one at Finra has ever contacted the firm, spoken with our investment professionals or reviewed our research in connection with these matters. We have experienced inquiries by the SEC over the years and cooperated fully, without any negative finding or charge.”