Uma notícia sobre as "stock options" está a fazer com que a Rambus esteja a cair, neste momento, mais de 13% na pré-abertura.
Uma vez mais, o problema das "stock options" a fazer das suas nos States...
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Rambus Warns of Stock Option Trouble
Wednesday June 28, 12:16 am ET
By Michael Liedtke, AP Business Writer
Rambus Warns Stock Option Trouble May Wipe Out Some Past Profits
"SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Computer chip supplier Rambus Inc. on Tuesday warned some of its previously reported profits might evaporate because the timing of stock options granted to its employees wasn't properly recorded -- a problem that could haunt scores of other companies as they review their past compensation practices.
The news, which caused Rambus's stock price to drop by more than 5 percent in extended trading, was the latest jolt in a budding scandal that threatens to once again shake investor confidence just as corporate America recovers from the accounting fiascos exposed after the fall of Enron Corp. nearly five years.
Like dozens of other companies, Los Altos, Calif.-based Rambus has been scrutinizing stock options distributed years ago to determine whether company insiders rigged the system to increase the likelihood that management would reap huge windfalls.
Under the practice, the options are backdated to an ebb in a company's stock price instead of pegging the exercise price to the prevailing market value at the time of the award.
Stock options become more valuable as the market price rises above the exercise price, so backdating fattens the recipient's profit.
At least 50 companies have launched their own internal inquiries into possible stock option abuses or have become targets of government investigations into the practice. Some companies already have gone so far as to fire some of their tops executives after learning about the manipulation of past stock options.
The number of companies responding to government inquiries continued to expand Tuesday. Cnet Networks Inc., VeriSign Inc., Foundry Networks Inc. and Cyberonics Inc. all disclosed they had received subpoenas seeking more information about their stock option awards from the U.S. Justice Department.
The Silicon Valley has become a focal point in the brewing tempest over stock options because the region's high-tech companies relied heavily on the awards to attract and motivate employees.
Backdating stock options isn't necessarily illegal, but it can cause a company to improperly deduct employee compensation expenses -- a misstep that could exaggerate profits and result in an underpayment of taxes.
Without providing specifics, Rambus said its audit committee had uncovered discrepancies between the dates that some stock options went on the books and the dates that they should have been recorded under accounting rules.
If the committee's continuing investigation determines the company has to absorb substantial charges to correct the error, Rambus said it may have wipe out some of its past profits. The potential restatements aren't expected to affect Rambus's revenue.
Rambus said it hadn't yet determined whether the accounting trouble will force it to amend its taxes.
The news, released after the stock market closed, agitated investors. Rambus shares fell 71 cents to close at $23.13 Tuesday on the Nasdaq Stock Market, then dropped $1.23, or 5.3 percent, in extended trading.
Rambus's results during the past decade have been a mixed bag -- ranging from a $33.7 million profit last year to a $106.1 million loss in 2000."
(in
www.yahoo.com)
Enviado: 13/9/2006 0:15
Q2 2006 Rambus Inc. Earnings Conference Call
