This could turn out strange: Federal prosecutors are investigating analyst firms to unravel insider trading cases which seem to involve routinely published information about public company supply chains — those ubiquitous ‘channel checks’ which analysts routinely send out. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is taking particular interest in how this affects Apple trades, the WSJ claims this morning. Investigators are pondering the legality of such checks — do they amount to insider trading? It comes down to information. While back in the day a whispered word in the back room or a short conversation in a bar could constitute insider trading, the remit now seems to extend to cases in which information should be kept quite, or as the WSJ puts it: The SEC is taking a close look at expert consultants in an attempt to uncover any insider dealings. Follow the author on Twitter.
