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Finance Watch: Opko's Stock Halted As Nasdaq Awaits An Explanation For SEC Pump-And-Dump Lawsuit

 
• By Mandy Jackson

Public Company Edition: An SEC complaint alleges that the company, Opko CEO Frost and co-defendants bought penny stocks, pumped up their value, then dumped shares for sizeable profits. Also, Pfizer and Retrophin float debt offerings, while Zealand sells royalties and milestone fees to raise cash.

Finance Watch

Trading of Opko Health Inc. shares on Nasdaq was halted by the exchange on Sept. 7 and the company said on Sept. 11 that trading will not resume until the company provides a satisfactory response to Nasdaq's questions about a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit alleging that Opko and its Chairman and CEO Phillip Frost participated in pump-and-dump stock trading schemes.

The company and Frost said in a statement issued soon after the SEC filed its civil complaint on Sept. 7 that they did not know about the lawsuit against them and several other defendants until the allegations were made public earlier that day

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