Securities Lawyers Blog

Investor Recovery Options for Alliance Resource Partners (ARLP) Losses

January 19, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment attorneys with Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor related losses in oil and gas and commodities related investments. Investors may have potential legal remedies due to unsuitable recommendations by their broker to invest in this speculative and volatile area. Alliance Resource Partners (Ticker Symbol: ARLP) is a Master Limited Partnership (MLP). About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. Alliance Resource Partners has declined 67.9% in value from its 52-week high and is trading at only $14.01 a share. Alliance Resource Partners business focuses in the coal sector.

In a recent Associated Press article, common stories of how investors are pitched by their financial advisors on oil and gas private placements were reported on. Often times these products are pitched as ways to ride the boom in U.S. oil and gas production and receive steady streams of income.

In the past year, investors have lost $20 billion in publicly traded in master limited partnerships, publicly traded oil funds. This amounts to an astonishing $8 of every $10 they had invested, according to a report prepared for The Associated Press article. The research does not include losses from $37 billion of bonds sold by the partnerships in the five years since 2010 or losses from private placement partnerships. However, banks like Citigroup, Barclays, and Wells Fargo made an estimated $1.1 billion in fees for selling these products to investors.

Morgan Stanley Broker Lance Slater Terminated After Allegations Of Personal Loans and Excessive Trading

January 18, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The securities lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating customer complaints filed with The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (FINRA) against broker Lance Slater (Slater). According to BrokerCheck records there are at least 2 customer complaints against Slater and one employment separation. The most recent customer complaint against Slater alleges that from 2013 Slater borrowed $210,000 from the client and then tried to hide that fact from her children and has not since then paid the client back. The client also alleges that Slater engaged in unsuitable investments and excessive trading.

Shortly thereafter Morgan Stanley discharged Slater making allegations Slater failed to adhere to the firm’s guidance regarding certain sales activity and possible involvement in an unreported loan from a customer while at a prior firm.

As a background, when brokers engage in excessive trading, sometimes referred to as churning, the broker will typical trade in and out of securities, sometimes even the same stock, many times over a short period of time. Often times the account will completely “turnover” every month with different securities. This type of investment trading activity in the client’s account serves no reasonable purpose for the investor and is engaged in only to profit the broker through the generation of commissions created by the trades. Churning is considered a species of securities fraud. The elements of the claim are excessive transactions of securities, broker control over the account, and intent to defraud the investor by obtaining unlawful commissions. A similar claim, excessive trading, under FINRA’s suitability rule involves just the first two elements. Certain commonly used measures and ratios used to determine churning help evaluate a churning claim. These ratios look at how frequently the account is turned over plus whether or not the expenses incurred in the account made it unreasonable that the investor could reasonably profit from the activity.

Investor Recovery Options for JP Energy Partners LP (JPEP) Losses

January 18, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment attorneys with Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor related losses in oil and gas and commodities related investments. Investors may have potential legal remedies due to unsuitable recommendations by their broker to invest in this speculative and volatile area. JP Energy Partners LP (Ticker Symbol: JPEP) is a Master Limited Partnership (MLP). About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. JP Energy Partners LP has declined 68% in value from its 52-week high and is trading at only $4.96 a share. JP Energy Partners LP business focuses in the oil and gas midstream sector.

In a recent Associated Press article, common stories of how investors are pitched by their financial advisors on oil and gas private placements were reported on. Often times these products are pitched as ways to ride the boom in U.S. oil and gas production and receive steady streams of income.

In the past year, investors have lost $20 billion in publicly traded in master limited partnerships, publicly traded oil funds. This amounts to an astonishing $8 of every $10 they had invested, according to a report prepared for The Associated Press article. The research does not include losses from $37 billion of bonds sold by the partnerships in the five years since 2010 or losses from private placement partnerships. However, banks like Citigroup, Barclays, and Wells Fargo made an estimated $1.1 billion in fees for selling these products to investors.

Gana LLP Represents Victims of Edward Durante’s, Christopher Cervino’s, and Larry Werbel’s Alleged VGTel Scheme

January 17, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The attorneys of Gana Weinstein LLP currently represent approximately 20 investors ensnared in Edward Durante’s (Durante), Christopher Cervino’s (Cervino), and Larry Werbel’s (Werbel) investment fraud scheme to manipulate the value of a number of penny stocks including VGTel, Inc. (VGTel), QLotus Holdings Inc., Haddad-Wylie Industries LLC (HWIC) and Cassidy Ventures, Inc. (CSVN). Recently, in simultaneous actions The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have filed charges against the foregoing individuals alleging that Durante and his co-conspirators defrauded more than 100 investors of at least $15,000,000.

The SEC’s and FBI’s charges mirror many of the allegations that been made by our clients. Durante is a repeat securities offender who was previously convicted in December 2001 of securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering barred by the SEC. Durante and his co-conspirators most recent fraud involved allegations of making false and misleading representations to investors to obtain funds to manipulate the public market in VGTL stock. Further, it was alleged that these individuals took advantage of their manipulation of the market to con investors into purchasing stock at inflated prices.

The defendants manipulated VGTL stock by allegedly controlling the majority of the public shares and then inducing investors to buy stock based on false representations and omissions, made unauthorized trades, and engaged in trades in which the defendants controlled both the accounts that purchased the stock and the accounts that sold the stock in order to artificially inflate the stock price and trading volume. Of the approximately $15 million invested in the fraudulent scheme, more than $9 million has been alleged to have been funneled to the defendants and other co-conspirators. For Werbel’s and Cervino’s efforts, the brokers received kickbacks and compensation from Durante.

SEC Claims Advisory Firm Atlantic Asset Management Hid Conflicts of Interests From Clients

January 16, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced fraud charges against a Stamford, Connecticut based investment advisory firm Atlantic Asset Management LLC (AAM) and accused the firm of investing clients in certain Native American tribal corporation bonds with a hidden financial benefit to a broker-dealer affiliated with the firm. The SEC alleged that AAM invested more than $43 million of client funds in the illiquid bonds without disclosing the conflict of interest that the bond sales generated a private placement fee for the broker-dealer.

According to the SEC, AAM committed securities fraud in August 2014 and in April 2015 by investing client funds in debt securities without telling its clients that the investments would benefit individuals affiliated with one of AAM’s owners, BFG Socially Responsible Investments Ltd. (BFG), which holds a significant ownership interest in AAM’s parent holding company due to an undisclosed investment in AAM. AAM never disclosed BFG’s capital contribution to and indirect ownership in AAM to its clients or in its filings with the SEC in violation of the federal securities laws. The SEC stated that these dicsloures were not made even after BFG’s principal representative was charged by the SEC and criminally in an unrelated securities fraud.

The SEC alleged that BFG has used its undisclosed ownership interest in AAM to dictate AAM’s investment of its clients’ funds in ways that benefited BFG and its principals and affiliates. The SEC alleged that clients’ funds were invested in dubious, illiquid bonds issued by a Native American tribal corporation at the behest of individuals associated with BFG.

Investor Recovery Options for Targa Resource Partners LP (NGLS) Losses

January 16, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment attorneys with Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor related losses in oil and gas and commodities related investments. Investors may have potential legal remedies due to unsuitable recommendations by their broker to invest in this speculative and volatile area. Targa Resource Partners LP (Ticker Symbol: NGLS) is a Master Limited Partnership (MLP). About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. Targa Resource Partners LP has declined 68.1% in value from its 52-week high and is trading at only $16.08 a share. Targa Resource Partners LP business focuses in the natural gas midstream sector.

In a recent Associated Press article, common stories of how investors are pitched by their financial advisors on oil and gas private placements were reported on. Often times these products are pitched as ways to ride the boom in U.S. oil and gas production and receive steady streams of income.

In the past year, investors have lost $20 billion in publicly traded in master limited partnerships, publicly traded oil funds. This amounts to an astonishing $8 of every $10 they had invested, according to a report prepared for The Associated Press article. The research does not include losses from $37 billion of bonds sold by the partnerships in the five years since 2010 or losses from private placement partnerships. However, banks like Citigroup, Barclays, and Wells Fargo made an estimated $1.1 billion in fees for selling these products to investors.

Broker Harris Kirk Under FINRA Investigation

January 15, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating customer complaints against broker Harris Kirk (Kirk). There are at least 3 customer complaints against Kirk. In addition, there is one employment separation disclosed and a FINRA investigation. Some of the customer complaints appear to be related to recommendation of oil and gas private placements and investments likely offered by Reef Oil and Gas Companies. The investment attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor losses and unsuitable investments in oil and gas related investments, like Reef Oil and Gas.

The employment termination from Reef Securities, Inc. (Reef) came in September 2013 after the firm alleged that Kirk engaged in actions inconsistent with the firm’s policies in that Kirk provided inaccurate information concerning his outside business activities. Thereafter, Kirk was employed by Chestnut Exploration Partners, Inc. until February 2015 at which time he was once again associated with Reef.

Investors often do not appreciate the risks when investing in oil and gas private placements. Even before the collapse of oil prices it was rare for investors to make money on oil deals. According to Reuters, of 34 deals Reef Oil and Gas has issued since 1996, only 12 have paid out more cash to investors than they initially contributed. Reuters also found that Reef sold an additional 31 smaller deals between 1996 and 2010 taking $146 million from investors and only paying out just $55 million.

Investor Recovery Options for Teekay LNG Partners (TGP) Losses

January 15, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment attorneys with Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor related losses in oil and gas and commodities related investments. Investors may have potential legal remedies due to unsuitable recommendations by their broker to invest in this speculative and volatile area. Teekay LNG Partners (Ticker Symbol: TGP) is a Master Limited Partnership (MLP). Teekay LNG Partners has declined 68.2% in value from its 52-week high and is trading at only $13.79 a share. Teekay LNG Partners business focuses in the liquid natural gas shipping sector.

In a recent Associated Press article, common stories of how investors are pitched by their financial advisors on oil and gas private placements were reported on. Often times these products are pitched as ways to ride the boom in U.S. oil and gas production and receive steady streams of income.

About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. In the past year, investors have lost $20 billion in publicly traded in master limited partnerships, publicly traded oil funds. This amounts to an astonishing $8 of every $10 they had invested, according to a report prepared for The Associated Press article. The research does not include losses from $37 billion of bonds sold by the partnerships in the five years since 2010 or losses from private placement partnerships. However, banks like Citigroup, Barclays, and Wells Fargo made an estimated $1.1 billion in fees for selling these products to investors.

Broker Garland Benton Terminated For Private Securities Transactions

January 14, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating customer complaints against broker Garland Benton (Benton). There are at least 3 customer complaints against Benton, one of which appears to be filed in connection with the solicitation of private securities transactions. In addition, there is one employment separations disclosed. One customer complaint alleges that Benton caused $946,670 in damages by failing to conduct due diligence on an investment while the firm has responded that the Benton was not a representative of the customer. In April 2015, Reef Securities Inc. (Reef) terminated Benton stating that the broker was permitted to resign after allegations were made that Benton failed to follow firm policies and procedures regarding private securities transactions from 2008. The conduct allegedly engaged in by Benton is also referred to as “selling away” in the industry.

Benton entered the securities industry in 2002. Between October 2002 and April 2015, Benton was associated with Reef.

In the industry the term selling away refers to when a financial advisor solicits investments in companies, promissory notes, or other securities that are not pre-approved by the broker’s affiliated firm. However, even though when these incidents occur the brokerage firm claims ignorance of their advisor’s activities the firm is obligated under the FINRA rules to properly monitor and supervise its employees in order to detect and prevent brokers from offering investments in this fashion. In order to properly supervise their brokers each firm is required to have procedures in order to monitor the activities of each advisor’s activities and interaction with the public. Selling away misconduct often occurs where brokerage firms either fail to put in place a reasonable supervisory system or fail to actually implement that system. Supervisory failures allow brokers to engage in unsupervised misconduct that can include all manner improper conduct including selling away.

Investor Recovery Options for Rose Rock Midstream (RRMS) Losses

January 14, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The investment attorneys with Gana Weinstein LLP continue to report on investor related losses in oil and gas and commodities related investments. Investors may have potential legal remedies due to unsuitable recommendations by their broker to invest in this speculative and volatile area. Rose Rock Midstream (Ticker Symbol: RRMS) is a Master Limited Partnership (MLP). Rose Rock Midstream has declined 69% in value from its 52-week high and is trading at only $16.74 a share. Rose Rock Midstream business focuses in the oil pipelines and storage sector.

About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. According to Bloomberg, many oil companies are in trouble and are going bankrupt as U.S. high-yield debt issued to junk-rated energy companies grew four-fold to $208 billion. The bankruptcies have been devastating causing forced selling at fire sale prices. For example, Dune Energy had reserves valued at more than $1 billion but sold those oil fields for only $19 million. The situation is only getting worse with lenders running out of options to put off debts. Most of these companies are now struggling to stay afloat with oil prices at $45.

Oil and gas and commodities related investments have been recommended by brokers under the assumption that commodities prices would continue to go up. Some experts are saying that if production volume continues to be as high as it currently is and demand growth weak that the return to $100 a barrel is years away.