NEWS:
Pfizer's CEO just sold $5.6M worth of stock through a 10b5-1 plan.
Execs are only supposed to enter into such plans when they do not have material nonpublic info.
On 8/19, Pfizer's CEO entered into his plan.
On 8/20, the company released positive Phase 1 trial data.
Pfizer's CEO just sold $5.6M worth of stock through a 10b5-1 plan.
Execs are only supposed to enter into such plans when they do not have material nonpublic info.
On 8/19, Pfizer's CEO entered into his plan.
On 8/20, the company released positive Phase 1 trial data.
The CEO Albert Bourla sold $5.6M worth of stock on Monday, following good news about the company's coronavirus vaccine.
His SEC filing notes that he made the trade pursuant to his 10b5-1 plan adopted on Aug. 19, 2020.
sec.gov/Archives/edgar…
His SEC filing notes that he made the trade pursuant to his 10b5-1 plan adopted on Aug. 19, 2020.
sec.gov/Archives/edgar…
On Aug. 20, 2020, the day after Bourla entered into that plan, the company issued this press release:
"PFIZER AND BIONTECH SHARE POSITIVE EARLY DATA ON LEAD MRNA VACCINE CANDIDATE BNT162B2 AGAINST COVID-19"
pfizer.com/news/press-rel…
"PFIZER AND BIONTECH SHARE POSITIVE EARLY DATA ON LEAD MRNA VACCINE CANDIDATE BNT162B2 AGAINST COVID-19"
pfizer.com/news/press-rel…
Fox Business News, Bloomberg, and CNBC all covered the news.
On Aug. 21, the day after the press release, CNBC noted that $PFE was "moving sharply higher today on an optimistic vaccine timeline.”
On Aug. 21, the day after the press release, CNBC noted that $PFE was "moving sharply higher today on an optimistic vaccine timeline.”
Wharton Professor Daniel Taylor called the timing "very suspicious."
"It's wholly inappropriate for executives at pharmaceutical companies to be implementing or modifying 10b5-1 plans the business day they announce data or results from drug trials," he told me.
"It's wholly inappropriate for executives at pharmaceutical companies to be implementing or modifying 10b5-1 plans the business day they announce data or results from drug trials," he told me.
A spokesperson for Pfizer told me that the company did not consider its Aug. 20 press release "material nonpublic information."
The spokesperson said much of the information was already public, and that it had minimal effect on the company's share price.
The spokesperson said much of the information was already public, and that it had minimal effect on the company's share price.
Here's the full statement from Pfizer: 
Here's my chat with @arishapiro on all this:
npr.org/2020/11/11/933…
Stand by for a more detailed digital story...
npr.org/2020/11/11/933…
Stand by for a more detailed digital story...
By the way, you may be wondering:
If an executive has material nonpublic information when they ADOPT their plan, but that information becomes public before they start trading stock, does that make the issue moot?
The SEC has said: Nope. sec.gov/divisions/corp…
If an executive has material nonpublic information when they ADOPT their plan, but that information becomes public before they start trading stock, does that make the issue moot?
The SEC has said: Nope. sec.gov/divisions/corp…
story now up:
npr.org/2020/11/11/933…
npr.org/2020/11/11/933…
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