Hat tip to Barry Ritholtz for pointing out the Journal's excellent options backdating grid. With more than 120 companies now embroiled in some measure of options backdating investigation, it's become a far more nuanced process in terms of the investment proposition. While early cases were treated with a "throw the baby out with the bathwater", the passage of time and ultimately the prevalence has muted investor reaction.
This Journal grid does a nice job of serving as both a base reference point, but also in helping clarify the relative severity of each case.
options backdating research wsj journal wall street journal woodrow investing
i am with thomas. people are still claiming enron was unusual and some bad apples. bullshit. fraud was, and still is, rife in public companies.
Posted by: James Governor | October 31, 2006 at 10:55 AM
Jason,
This backdating business vidicates the need for laws like SOX.
1)Does SOX help detect, prevent and prosecute in the case of backdating?
2)As a professional investor does this stuff worry you?
interesting stuff here.
http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=42244&lastestnews=1
http://www.soxfirst.com/50226711/stock_options_backdating_six_degrees_of_separation.php
http://www.professorbainbridge.com/2006/07/option_backdati.html
Posted by: Thomas | October 28, 2006 at 03:27 AM