MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - A Minnesota man snooped in his wife’s work papers and used information about UnitedHealth Group’s upcoming acquisitions to profit from insider trading, according to regulators.
The Securities and Exchange Commission sued James Hengen for allegedly stealing information about two pending UnitedHealth acquisitions, The Star Tribune reported . The complaint alleged Hengen used the information to make about $60,000 from buying and selling stocks, and to provide information to his brother and three co-workers, who used the pending deal information to buy shares.
Hengen has agreed to pay about $140,000 to resolve civil charges stemming from the allegations. He declined to comment on the case, but he filed a consent to final judgment last week that says he doesn’t admit or deny the allegations against him.
UnitedHealth Group declined also declined comment to the newspaper.
The complaint said Hengen breached “his duty of trust and confidence” to his wife, who isn’t named in the documents. She also isn’t accused of wrongdoing.
The SEC said Hengen bought more than 8,000 shares of USMD Holdings in the summer 2016, after hearing his wife talking about the company while on a work conference call. WellMed, a subsidiary in UnitedHealth’s OptumCare division, announced in September 2016 that it planned to acquire USMD. The company’s stock rose 8 percent after the announcement.
The SEC said Hengen also purchased more than 3,100 shares of Surgical Care Affiliates in December 2016 after looking at his wife’s notebook. OptumCare announced in January 2017 that it would purchase SCA. The company’s shares increased by 16 percent.
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Information from: Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com
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