The ImClone Insider Trading Case What did Martha Really Do

In 2004, famous businesswoman and TV personality Martha Stewart served five months in federal prison at Alderson in West Virginia. After she served her time at the federal prison camp, she was placed on two additional years of supervised release, a portion of which she spent in home confinement.  What was her crime? The case was all about insider trading. What Is Insider Trading? When most people hear the term â€Å"insider trading,† they think of the crime. But by its most basic definition, insider trading is the trading of a public companys stock or other securities by individuals with access to nonpublic, or insider, information about the company. This can include  the perfectly legal buying and selling of stock by a company’s corporate insiders. But it can also include illegal actions of individuals attempting to benefit from a trade based on that inside information.   Legal and Illegal Insider Trading   Legal insider trading is a common occurrence among employees who hold stock or stock options. Insider trading is legal when these corporate insiders trade stock of their own company and report these trades to the  U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission  (SEC) through what is known simply as Form 4. Under these rules, the insider trading is not secretive as the trade is made publicly. Legal insider trading is but a few steps away from its illegal counterpart. Insider trading becomes illegal when a person bases their trade of securities of a public company on information that the public does not know. Not only is it illegal to trade your own stock in a company based on this insider information, but it is also illegal to provide another person with that information, a tip so to speak, so they may take action with their own stock holdings using that information. Acting upon an insider stock tip is exactly what Martha Stewart was charged with. Lets take a look at her case. The SEC’s job is to make sure that all investors are making decisions based on the same information. Most simply put, illegal insider trading is believed to destroy this level playing field. The Martha Stewart Insider Trading Case In 2001, Martha Stewart sold all of her shares of the biotech company, ImClone. Just two days later, ImClones stock fell 16% after it was publically announced that the FDA had not approved ImClones primary pharmaceutical product, Erbitux. By selling her shares in the company prior to the announcement and subsequent drop in the stocks value, Stewart avoided a $45,673 loss. However, she was not the only who benefitted from a quick sale. The then ImClone CEO, Sam Waksal, had also ordered the sale of his extensive share in the company, a $5 million stake to be exact, prior to the news being made public. Identifying and proving the illegal case of insider trading against Waskal was easy for regulators; Waksal attempted to avoid a loss based on the nonpublic knowledge of the FDAs decision, which he knew would hurt the stocks value and did not comply with the Security Exchange Commissions (SEC) rules to do so. Stewarts case proved to be more difficult. While Stewart had certainly made a suspiciously timely sale of her stock, regulators would have to prove that she had acted on insider information to avoid the loss. Martha Stewarts Insider Trading Trial and Sentencing The case against Martha Stewart proved to be more complicated than first imagined. Over the course of the investigation and trial, it came to light that Stewart had acted on a piece of nonpublic information, but that the information was not explicit knowledge of the FDAs decision about ImClones drug approval. Stewart had actually acted upon a tip from her Merrill Lynch broker,  Peter Bacanovic, whom also worked with Waskal. Bacanovic knew that Waskal was attempting to unload his large stake in his company, and while he did not know precisely why, he tipped Stewart off on Waksals actions which lead to the selling of her shares. For Stewart to be charged with insider trading, it would have to be proved that she acted upon nonpublic information. Had Stewart traded based on knowledge of the FDA decision, the case would have been strong, but Stewart only knew that Waskal had sold his shares. To build a strong insider trading case then, it would have to be proved that the sale violated some duty of Stewarts to refrain from trading based on the information. Not being a board member or otherwise affiliated with ImClone, Stewart did not hold such a duty. She did, however, act on a tip that she knew breached her brokers duty. In essence, it could be proved that she knew her actions were questionable at the very least and illegal at the worst. Ultimately, these unique facts surrounding the case against Stewart led to prosecutors to focus on the series of lies Stewart told to cover the facts surrounding her trade. Stewart was sentenced to 5 months of prison time for obstruction of justice and conspiracy after the insider trading charges were dropped and securities  fraud charges dismissed. In addition to the prison sentence, Stewart also settled with the SEC on a separate, but related case in which she paid a fine of four times the amount of the loss she avoided plus interest, which came to a whopping total of $195,000. She was also forced to step down as CEO from her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, for a duration of five years. Punishments and Rewards Associated With Insider Trading According to the SEC website, there are almost 500 civil enforcement actions each year against individuals and companies that break securities laws. Insider trading is one of the most common laws broken. The punishment for illegal insider trading depends on the situation. The person can be fined, banned from sitting on the executive or board of directors of a public company, and even jailed. The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 in the United States allows the Securities and Exchange Commission to give a reward or bounty to someone who gives the Commission information that results in a fine of insider trading.

Essay Sports Psychology - 1172 Words

The five main things that I learned in sports psychology from is Goal Setting, Awareness, Leadership, Reboundability, and Routines. These all help me not only in the sport world but also in life. It is important to study these things and practice them as much as possible to achieve the greatest benefits from them nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Until recently I have never really thought about my goals. I have had them, but have never planned them out or evaluated outcomes. When we had a guest speaker named Mark Henry spoke to use about goal setting. Before I wouldn’t put dates or plans with my goals. It helps a lot when you have a date to start the goal and a date when you want to achieve the goal. One thing Mark Henry taught me was that a†¦show more content†¦My stress level is down and life is a lot more enjoyable. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Routines are also a very important thing I learned this year. I have always had a routine in my life because of school but I never knew how important it is. When I was a freshman in high school I went to a private boarding school in Canada. Because I lived on campus I had a very strict routine. Everyday at the same time I would do the same thing. It made things like getting up for breakfast and being to sport on time easier. Even when I didnt want to do something like homework I would have 2 hours to do nothing at all except sit in my room so I would end up doing my homework. Even though it was forced on me at the beginning of the school year I enjoyed it in the middle and end. When routine was interrupted for any reason it was harder for me to get back on track. For example if we had a sleep in the next day it was harder for me to get up. With out a routine I would always be late for events and behind. With a routine you give yourself enough time to do thing s that need to be done. Today my routine is the same as before when a couple hours of my night is for studying and another couple hours is for eating and fun. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;I have always had trouble with rebound ability. From watching the videos such as the HBO special on the Tennessee basketball team I learned that everyone has set backs. They had big set backs such as key players being injured.Show MoreRelatedSport Psychology : Sports Psychology1599 Words   |  7 PagesSports Psychology Sports psychology is a relatively new topic of research that first started out in 1925 as a preparation tactic for athletes before an important event to increase chances of success (Joyce, 2008). In the world today sports psychology is increasingly being used in sports but also manipulated into research to use in organizational groups. 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Accounting Financial Report

Question: Describe about financial performance, financial Position and limitation of financial statements and ratio. Answer: Introduction The retail chain of Next was launched in the year 1982 and the initial store was opened that contained stylish clothes, shoes, as well as accessories for females. Soon after that, the collection for men and children followed. Next clothes are provided unique style by the design team that is present inn house and provide value for money. In the current scenario, there are more than 500 stores present in the UK and Eire. Furthermore, more than 200 stores are present in more than 40 countries. Several landmarks were made by Next in a sequence. In 2011, it opened the merged fashion and garden store at Shoreham-by-sea. In 2014, two more stores were added and in 2015, it opened High Wycombe store (Next Plc, 2015). Next strives to enhance the customer base by introduction of new and varied techniques like next day delivery that appeals the customers to a considerable extent. Financial Performance Significant achievements were made by Next in the year 2015 that boasts about its strong financial performance. The increment in the EPS and paying dividend to shareholders indicates that the company has made adequate profit and has solidity. The EPS and the ordinary dividend has been a consistent achievement of the company and it has done it for the straight sixth consecutive year. Moreover, the sales, as well as revenue is a classic indication that the company has performed in a strong manner (Investors Chronicle, 2015). The retail sales increased by 5% while the online business saw a jump of 12%. The sales of the entire group went up by 7% and reached a strong figure of 4 billion for the first time. The share prices also indicates that the company performed in a strong manner because the investors vouch for those shares that are fundamentally strong and have a potential to deliver returns consistently (Investors Chronicle, 2015). The share price went up by 62.80 to 71.50 indicatin g the strong financial performance. There was not buying back of the shares rather surplus cash was returned through the way of dividend. A huge sum of 572 million was returned to the shareholders through the scheme of buybacks and dividends. Moreover, the company did not use the investment to return cash to the shareholders and neither by increasing the debt (Northington, 2011). This indicates that the company performed at a true potential that helped it to provide benefits to the shareholders without any compromise. Moreover, next continued the manner of investing in new, as well as larger stores. With the enhancement in the base of the customer, it has now spread to more than 71 countries in total and enhancing the image. The distribution, as well as warehouse capacity is enhanced that enables the company to provide better facilities. There has been a strong change in the administrative, selling expenses that contributed to a strong financial performance. The financial position is mainly expressed through availability of funds and the manner in which the company is able to meet the exchanges in foreign exchange rate and the interest rates. Moreover, compliances with the regulation also play an important role in shedding light on the financial position. Next follows a policy of returning cash to shareholders that is in surplus through buyback, as well as special dividend. Moreover, the company is able to maintain a proper structure of debt that goes in favour of the company. It has an appropriate balance of equity plus debt. Adequate finance is needed that is procured through the operational activities. Next is also prone to credit risk and mainly in the form of Directory customer receivables that stands at 712m that projects the biggest item on the balance sheet. Moreover, next performs through a centralized treasury function that is entrusted with the task of meeting the risk that arises from liquidity, interest and currency risks. T he treasury operates through an approved policy of the board. Next has appropriate medium, as well as long term financing that support the operations of the business and even the cash position that is reported to the Board. Therefore, Next Plc financial performance in the year 2015 has been entirely due to the presence of strong policies and financial management. The annual report clearly shows that the progress made by Next Plc has been considerable as compared to the year 2014. Financial Position The financial performance of the company was strong and has been clearly depicted with the help of income statement, balance sheet, and cash flows. The financial performance of the company is signifies through the income statement, balance sheet (Albrecht et. al, 2011). Moreover, appropriate ratios help in the telling about the financial performance of the company. The sales enhanced in the year 2015 to reach 4 billion and the underlying profit got a good boast reaching a high of 782 million. The financial position was strong because the company paid dividend and without any compromise on the profits. Ordinary, as well as special dividend was paid providing benefits to the shareholders. Buy back of the shares was also done that was of 138 m (Next Plc, 2015). The financial position of the company was done by way of equity, reserves, and investments. No over-dependence was present on debt. Hence, it can be said that the policy stressed entirely on equity and derived strong profitabilit y. The share price also received a great boost and increased by 4.8% displaying solidity. A better projection of the financial position is done with the help of ratios. The following are the ratios that are computed: Current Ratio The current ratio is major ratio when it comes to the ability of the company is meeting the obligations. One of the major ratios that indicates the liquidity of the company (Melville, 2013). The current ratio of Next Plc has increased and is heading towards the standard ratio of 2:1 indicating that the company is in a strong financial position to discharge the obligations and there will be no errors in that. Gross profit Ratio One of the strongest profitability indicators that helps to assess the financial position. The GP ratio has increased marginally that indicates the company is able to manage the cost of goods sold in a proper manner (Melville, 2013). Further enhancement can be seen when there is a further control on the cost of goods sold. Net Profit Ratio The Net profit margin of the company has increased in 2015 and has surpassed the percentage of 2014 indicating a strong sales and generation of strong profit numbers. The operating expenses have been in a strong control and hence a ratio has shown an immense change (Horngren, 2013). Operating profit ratio This ratio is termed as ratio of operating profit to sales. In 2015, the operating profit ratio stands at 20.30% as compared to 19.62% in 2014. The progress in this ratio is entirely by dint of a strong control over the operating expenses (Horngren, 2013). Proprietary Ratio A higher proprietary ratio is always needed because it sheds light on the finance that is done by the shareholders (Christensen, 2011). However, there is a decline in the ratio and the company needs to rectify it in the coming year. Return on Equity Return on equity indicates the profit generated by the company by using the funds of tee shareholders (Christensen, 2011). The ratio has shown a marginal increase that indicates the financial position of the company strong and hence able to use the funds of the shareholders in an effective manner. Receivables collection Period The collection period has enhanced in a marginal manner indicating that the management has used the policies in an effective manner. Hence, efficiency of the management is strong. Payables payment period This ratio indicates the payment made to the suppliers. The average payment period has declined indicating that the company will be able to pay the suppliers in a quick span of time (Merchant, 2012). Price / Earnings Ratio The price earnings ratio of Next Plc is a little lower in 2015, it is 17.05 as compared to 17.15 seen in the year 2015. A slight decline is not of a much concern as going by the other ratio the company has a strong stability. Dividend Cover Ratio This ratio states the number of times the shareholder will receive dividend (Lapsley, 2012). However, the ratio has fallen marginally, but going by the historic performance and the current number it is still strong and will continue to provide dividend. Going by the above discussion and the ratio analysis it can be stated that Next Plcs financial position is strong and is bound to continue a strong run in the near future. Limitation of financial statements and ratio Ratio analysis fails to consider the intangible factors like brand, skills, labour organization, culture, etc. These are considered important and vital in the long run. However, ignorance of all factors leads to problem. The ratio analysis is done considering the accounting data that is present in the financial statements. However, the financial statements are not free from error and mismanagement. Therefore, simply relying on such data will not project a clear view and may prove to be wrong (Graham Smart, 2012). Different companies use different method of computation and hence comparison of two different companies from different sector cannot be apt. It is because the ratios can be derived from various methods and there is no standard applicability (Davies Crawford, 2012). Hence, in this scenario it becomes difficult to compare and know the result. The computation depends on the data that is available and one company may give greater emphasis to one set of data as compared to other. Financial statements also suffer from deficiency. They cannot be said as the best tool for evaluation because it is prepared considering the historical data. The historical data is not of much relevance when it comes to the [resent scenario. Planning should not be done considering it because it has flaws in it (Davies Crawford, 2012). Conclusion Going by the ratio analysis and view of the annual report it can be said that the company had a strong year where the entire unit performed in a strong manner and reached great height. The profit was strongly supported by the turnover and the resources were used in an efficient manner. Going by the solvency and liquidity it can be said that the company is a good bargain for the long term and one can strive for outer performance (Brealey et. al, 2011). The company has a strong asset base and the cash flow shows that the company has met the situation with great ease. Moreover, the company is strong when it comes to principle of ethics and corporate governance. It has adhered by all the principles and therefore the progress is fast as compared to the peers. Moreover, the shareholders are also provided benefits in the form of dividend that is a major advantage of the company. This is one of the reasons why the investors have invested in this stock. Year by year the company has achieved s ignificant feat that implies Next Plc is adapted to the internal and external environment. The company strives to perform by providing unique design to the customers and the same can be seen in the coming scenario. At current, the company has 4 million customers and with the strong development and line-up, Next Plc is destined to make further advancements and hence is a strong recommendation. Computation of Ratios Current Ratio CURRENT RATIO 2014 2015 Current assets 1,468.10 1,616.00 Current liabilities 886.6 834.5 Current Ratio 1.655876 1.936489 Working Capital 581.5 781.5 GP Ratio GP RATIO 2014 2015 gross profit 1240.1 1343.4 Sales 3,740.00 3,999.80 GP ratio 33.15775 33.58668 Net profit Ratio NP ratio 2014 2015 Net profit 553.2 634.9 sales 3,740.00 3,999.80 NP ratio 14.79144 15.87329 Operating profit ratio operating profit ratio 2014 2015 operating profit 722.8 812.1 sales 3,740.00 3,999.80 Operating P ratio 19.3262 20.30352 Proprietary Ratio Proprietary Ratio 2014 2015 Share capital 1,55,032 1,52,874 Reserves 2,84,154 2,88,528 Shareholders fund 1,677 1,608 Total assets 2,709 2,709 Proprietary Ratio 0.619158 0.593444 Return on Equity 2014 2014 Net profit 553.2 634.9 Shareholders fund 286.20 321.90 Return on equity (%) 1.932914 1.972352 Ratios Formula Computation 2015 2014 7 Receivables collection Period 365 / Debtor's Turnover Ratio 11.69 11.48 8 Payables Payment Period 365/ Creditor's Turnover Ratio 37.06 40.20 9 Price / Earnings Ratio Market price per share / Earnings per share 17.03 17.15 10 Dividend Cover Ratio (Profit After Tax - Preference Dividend) / Dividend paid to Equity Shareholders 2.94 3.33 References Albrecht, W., Stice, E. and Stice, J 2011, Financial accounting, Mason, OH: Thomson/South-Western. Brealey, R., Myers, S. and Allen, F 2011, Principles of corporate finance, New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Christensen, J 2011, Good analytical research, European Accounting Review, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 41-51 Davies, T. and Crawford, I 2012, Financial accounting, Harlow, England: Pearson. Investors Chronicle 2015, Next Plc Financial, viewed 3 February 2016, https://markets.investorschronicle.co.uk/research/Markets/Companies/Financials?s=NXT:LSEsubview=Overview. Graham, J. and Smart, S 2012, Introduction to corporate finance, Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning. Lapsley, I. 2012, Commentary: Financial Accountability Management, Qualitative Research in Accounting Management, vol. 9, no.3, pp. 291-292. Libby, R., Libby, P. and Short, D 2011,Financial accounting, New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Horngren, C 2013, Financial accounting, Frenchs Forest, N.S.W: Pearson Australia Group. Melville, A 2013, International Financial Reporting A Practical Guide, 4th edition, Pearson, Education Limited, UK Merchant, K. A 2012, Making Management Accounting Research More Useful, Pacific Accounting Review, vol. 24, no.3, pp. 1-34. Northington, S 2011, Finance. New York, NY: Ferguson's. Next Plc Ltd 2015, Next Plc Ltd. Annual Report and accounts 2015., viewed 3 February 2015, https://www.nextplc.co.uk/~/media/Files/N/Next-PLC-V2/documents/reports-and-presentations/2014/next-annual-report-2015-final-web.pdf.

Media in Elections an Example by

Media in Elections by Expert Lilliana | 16 Dec 2016 Media plays a vital role in the development of our national politics than most of the people realize. Media helps in defining the major issues and acts as a gatekeeper in setting limits for political dialogue and even candidacies for public office. One of the major example of a candidate who knows how to play within the medias rules and later use them to their own advantage is Barack Obama. Writer at EssayLab write best essay for students. Need essay sample on "Media in Elections" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed The media can also play a major role to veto the candidates such as in the case of John Edwards. He led his rivals in introducing a severe health care plan, and questionably transformed the contest in his appeal to the Democratic base on that and also other issues. But the media still rejects Edward, by ignoring him and by covering more of negative reporting than the other key contenders. The same incident had also occurred with Howard Dean in 2004, who rallied the Democratic base but later on found himself about six times in many negative articles covered by the media than his opponents. Undergraduates Usually Tell EssayLab specialists:How much do I have to pay someone to make my essay online?Professional writers recommend: Order Papers On Essaylab.ComAcademic Paper Writing Services Best Website To Buy College Papers Need Help With Assignment University Essay Writing Service The media does way much more than to directly control the opinion of the voters. Most of the politicians, institutions and other political participants will not bother wasting resources on a candidate they think is unlikely to win. The voters often look at how the media is treating the candidate in order to come to a decision. If the media is not taking a certain candidate seriously or is unreceptive to the candidate, those potential supporters will look somewhere else. So, obviously how the media portrays a candidate plays a very important role in the mind of the voters. Until lately, the sole medium was the printed press. It had a limited reach only because functional literacy was in minority. But since then times have definitely changed, now elections are dominated by the television, a development which can be traced back in time to 1960 which showed the first television debate between US presidential candidates. But this view point is partially correct. The majority of the worlds populations does not even watch television as they have no electricity or can not afford to buy one. Nor is this only a phenomenon of dictatorships - the world's largest democracy, after all, is India. For such countries, radio remains the most important medium. Election campaigns are obviously a very special case of political communication, defined by Wolton as "the space in which contradictory discourse is exchanged between three actors with the legitimate right to express themselves in public on politics, namely politicians, journalists and public opinion" ( 1990). As stated by Mickiewicz and Firestone (1992), during an election campaign in a democratic culture, each of these have different interests: The candidate is interested in reaching the electorate; the media take an interest in elections as journalists and as media; and the public is interested in receiving the information necessary to participate knowledgeably in an election. Assuming that they are not associated with any political parties and are not dedicated to furthering any political foundation, the media's welfare can be further defined in terms of three goals: first, to serve the candidates and the audience by making available facilities for direct access by candidates to airtime or news and/or opinion and editorial pages of newspapers and periodicals, as provided for by electoral law and dictated by the newsworthiness and importance of an election in broad: secondly, to provide the audience by covering the election campaign and providing additional information, background, analysis, and commentary which help the audience make an informed choice on polling day; and third, to avoid being caught in political controversies or becoming a battleground for competing parties, and to avoid compromising their credibility by biased or unbalanced coverage of the campaign. This approach views media performance in elections in terms of the purposive action of their managerial and editorial staff, that is, of the media organization itself. This is just one way of looking at the issue, however, because the mass media play several distinctly different roles in elections. As communication media, their generic properties and structural characteristics have by themselves helped remake the shape of election campaigns and have, in general, played an important role in shaping the political process. The media also are channels for communicating ideas and images existing or created independently of themselves, that is, channels of communication between the politicians and the public (hopefully this will be two-way communication) and among the politicians themselves. Politicians seek to reach out to the public with their images, election platforms, and views on election issues; in turn, the public in various ways voices, to and through the media, its views on the candidates and parties contesting the election. Similarly, the candidates respond to messages spread by other politicians and directly or indirectly engage in a debate with them. And, of course, the media also function as communicators, originating messages and images and introducing them into social discourse, that is, as initiators of political communication and as communicators of their own messages (e.g., coverage and analysis of the campaign, staging of debates, interviews with candidates conducted at the media's own initiative). Recognition of the media's role in elections as communicators raises a new set of issues concerning their ability to act independently in that capacity. There seems to be widespread acceptance in the literature of the view that the impetus which decides what role the media will play comes largely from outside the media system. If so, their role in the political process may turn out to be secondary and derivative in many cases. However, the media's ability to affect the voters in other ways is limited. We could thus say that the media's influence on election results is in inverse proportion to the gravity of issues facing the voters, the stakes involved for them personally in the election result, and the extent of their political commitment. Therefore, the more that depends on the outcome of the election for the voters personally, the more interested they will be in the issues, the more intense their political commitment will be, and the less they will need to rely on the media to make sense of the dilemmas involved or to make up their mind who to support. As a general rule, this means that the content delivered by the media, and especially television, in their role as channels and communicators, can be a relatively powerful force at election time in societies marked by a general social consensus on the shape of the country's political and economic system (this is usually a feature of stable, prosperous, and democratic societies). In such circumstances, the general level of political awareness and commitment in society will be low, and there will not be a fundamental difference between the election platforms of leading contenders or much at stake in the outcome of the election for most voters personally. Therefore, receptivity to media-delivered and media-originated information and persuasive messages may be high. And conversely, where these conditions do not obtain, this receptivity may be low. References Wolton D. (1990). "Political communication: The construction of a model". European Journal of Communication, 5( 1), 9-28. Mickiewicz E., & Firestone C. ( 1992). Television and elections. Queenstown, Md.: The Aspen Institute. Swerdlow J. L. (Ed.). ( 1988). Media technology and the vote: A source book. Washington, D.C.: The Annenberg Washington Program. Abramson J. B., Arterton E. C., & Orren C. R. ( 1988). The electronic commonwealth. New York: Basic Books. Gurevitch M., & Blumler J. G. ( 1983). Linkages between the mass media and politics: A model for the analysis of political communication systems. In J. Curran, M. Gurevitch , & J. Woollacott (Eds.), Mass communication and society (pp. 270-290). London: Edward Arnold.