Smart Technologies, Inc. (SMT)
Zamansky & Associates LLC has commenced an investigation of Smart Technologies Inc. (“SMT” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: SMT) and its lead underwriters for possible violations of federal securities laws related to the Company’s July 15, 2010 Initial Public Offering. The Company designs, develops, and sells interactive technology products and solutions worldwide, including interactive whiteboards and touch-enabled display components which have become popular in classrooms
On November 9, 2010, after the market closed, SMT announced weaker-than-expected revenue for the 2010 second quarter. In a reaction to this news and a subsequent analyst downgrade, shares of SMT fell 31% on high trading volume. We are investigating whether the Company and its lead underwriters fairly valued the IPO, properly disclosed conflicts of interest and risks associated with the terms of the deal, and properly disclosed the Company’s prospects and outlook.
If you purchased shares of SMT in the IPO and would like to discuss this action, or if you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights as a potential class member or lead plaintiff, please contact Jake Zamansky at 212 742-1414 or email jake@zamansky.com.
Angelo Mozilo’s SEC Victory
by on October 19, 2010
Angelo Mozilo must be feeling pretty good these days. The guy with the perpetual tan earned well over a half billion dollars transforming Countrywide Financial into one of the nation’s leading mortgage lenders and then ran it into the ground by saddling the company with dubious mortgages that nearly led to the country’s ruin. And what is his SEC punishment for alleged insider trading and misleading shareholders?
A $67.5 million fine, of which about one-third will be paid by Countrywide’s acquirer, Bank of America, along with his legal fees. What’s more, Mozilo didn’t even have to admit any wrongdoing. In Wall Street parlance, he made one heck of a trade.
Yes, Mozilo also was banned for life from serving as an officer or director of a company, but given his track record and the fact he’s 71, his career working at public companies was pretty much over to begin with. Managing his hefty billion dollar portfolio should keep him pretty busy, particularly if Mozilo wants to judiciously avoid public companies managed by greedy executives like himself who put their interests ahead of shareholders.
By any measure, Mozilo’s penalty amounts to a wrist slap and will hardly serve as a deterrent. And the sad truth is the SEC can hardly be faulted for letting Mozilo off virtually scott free. The agency simply doesn’t have the resources to take on companies or individuals with extensive means. Prosecuting Mozilo would have been a formidable and high risk challenge; even if the agency garnered a win in court — and a victory was far from assured — he has the means to file appeals and drag the case on for years. Ditto for Goldman Sachs, which the SEC let off for a measly $550 million fine for securities fraud and no required admission of wrongdoing.
Admittedly, Mozilo still reportedly faces possible criminal charges and federal prosecutors have the talent and wherewithal to go the distance with Mozilo’s legal army. If prosecutors do bring charges, let’s hope they do a better job convincing a jury than they did prosecuting Ralph R. Cioffi and Matthew M. Tannin.
In the meantime, Mozilo can continue enjoying the good life with his Wall Street enablers. Sadly, there is no public shame being accused of wrongdoing by the SEC. Despite charges that ultimately led to a $6 million fine and a two-year ban from the securities industry for his role in a pay-to-play scandal involving New York State’s pension fund, former Quadrangle Group head Steven Rattner was feted last week at a reception attended by an impressive bevy of bold-faced names.
People with power on Wall Street don’t take the SEC all that seriously. The Goldman and Mozilo settlements give them ample reason not to.
Prime Capital Services (PCS) and Gilman Ciocia
Zamansky & Associates LLC has launched an investigation into the sales practices of Prime Capital Services (PCS), a brokerage firm and subsidiary of Gilman Ciocia, an income tax preparation business. We are investigating how PCS and Gilman Ciocia sold variable annuities and whether the firms improperly targeted elderly investors.
The SEC censured Gilman Ciocia and PCS for misrepresenting the variable annuities it sold to senior citizens in the South Florida region. The SEC found that PCS and Gilman Ciocia held free-lunch seminars where elderly customers were aggressively sold investment products that were entirely unsuitable.
We are hearing from the firm’s elderly customers that PCS misrepresented the characteristics of the variable annuities they were sold. Investors claim they were promised they would receive the return of their principal and a guaranteed fixed rate of interest after a given amount of time regardless of how the stock market performed, however, PCS failed to disclose that these guaranteed returns would be paid only if they elected to annuitize their investments.
The SEC has already ordered PCS and Gilman Ciocia to return over $150,000 in elicit gains and pay a fine of $450,000.
If you are a victim of the alleged fraud orchestrated by Gilman Ciocia and/or its Prime Capital Services (PCS) subsidiary, contact Zamansky & Associates LLC here. Consultations are completely confidential and free of charge.
More Lawsuits To Follow?
CNBC : by on April 19, 2010
Lawyers Warn of a Clients Exodus from Goldman Sachs
London Evening Standard : by on April 19, 2010
Goldman CDO Case Could Be Tip of Iceberg
Reuters : by on April 19, 2010
Bank of America’s Brian Moynihan Pulls A “Mark McGwire”
by on January 19, 2010
As I was watching yesterday’s hearings convened by President Obama’s Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission I couldn’t help recall how former baseball slugger and admitted steroid user Mark McGwire sidestepped a question at a Congressional hearing about whether he ever used performance enhancing drugs.
“I’m not here to discuss the past,” he replied, a response quite likely coached by his attorneys to ensure he didn’t say anything legally culpable.
Similarly, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan gave a deft legal response when testifying before the Financial Crisis Committee.
“It has been clear how poor business judgments we have made have affected Main Street,” he said.
Though the significance of Moynihan’s comment was lost on the media, he, too, was making certain he avoided saying anything that could legally come back to haunt him. There is an aptly named legal doctrine called the “business judgment rule” which states, among other things, that a court will not review the business decisions of directors who performed their duties (1) in good faith; (2) with the care that an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances; and (3) in a manner the directors reasonably believe to be in the best interests of the corporation.
Moynihan, a lawyer by training, plays possum with a skill that would do famed heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali proud.
Phil Angelide’s Sorry Beginning
by on January 19, 2010
As I noted in my post earlier this week, I don’t detect enough taxpayer outrage to ensure that Phil Angelide’s Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) will lead to any meaningful discoveries or reform and thus, my worst fears appear to be well on their way to being realized. The first two days of hearings were merely political grandstanding and didn’t uncover one iota of new information. It was already well known that Goldman Sachs peddled mortgage-backed securities to its clients and then bet against them. Furthermore, the mea culpas of Messrs. Blankfein, Mack, Moynihan and Dimon didn’t strike me as all that sincere.
Similarly, the decision to probe the actions of regulators back to the Clinton administration is a colossal waste of time and taxpayer resources. Regulation of Wall Street has been virtually non-existent for the past decade; the little wrongdoing that regulators have uncovered has been addressed with fines so paltry that they barely put a dent in the profits earned from such deeds. Indeed, Wall Street has long regarded regulators as mere gnats who are using “public service” to further their careers and then land high paying jobs with the companies they are supposedly “regulating.”
If Angelides really wants to elicit some new perspectives and insights, he might consider calling the folks who had the prescience to predict and profit from the collapse of the subprime market. It would be interesting to know more about these people and why they were so much smarter than the vast majority of people working on Wall Street.
It would also be interesting to find out if the folks who bought Goldman’s mortgage-backed securities really were advised by Goldman that they were shorting the securities….as the company has claimed. I wonder if these clients continue doing business with the firm?