SERIES-63 practice question 28 of 35

Noah Scruples, an agent with CanDo Broker-Dealers, just got a copy of the most recent report on a certain stock. The report was generated by CanDo’s…

Noah Scruples, an agent with CanDo Broker-Dealers, just got a copy of the most recent report on a certain stock. The report was generated by CanDo’s analyst department and is hot off the presses. It has not yet even been put on the firm’s website for the firm’s clients. The analyst department has just changed its recommendation on the stock from “Hold” to “Strong Buy” based on new information that it has obtained on the company. Can Noah rush to his office to buy shares of the stock before the analysts release their reports to CanDo’s clients?

Answer options

A: Yes. The firm’s analysts used publicly available information to assess the stock and make its recommendation, so Noah can buy the stock now on his own account.

B: No. It is unethical for him to trade based on this information before the firm’s clients have received the information. Correct answer

C: No. This is a prohibited activity referred to as “painting the tape.”

D: Both B and C are true statements.

Correct Answer:

B. No. It is unethical for him to trade based on this information before the firm’s clients have received the information.

Explanation

No. It is unethical for him to trade based on the information that just came from the analysts before the firm’s clients have the information. This is a prohibited practice called “front running.”

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