Couple named by SEC in insider-trading case
An Englewood couple were among six people sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday for alleged illegal insider trading at a Georgia company that preserves and sells implantable human tissue.
The SEC alleges that Prescott Nash, former mountain-region manager for CryoLife Inc., and his wife, Christina Nash, and others related to the company sold stock after learning April 13 that the government had placed a nationwide hold on tissue shipments from CryoLife after an investigation into patient deaths.
The company did not notify the public of the hold until April 14, after the stock was sold, the SEC says.
The six have agreed to pay $292,000 in disgorgement, interest and penalties, the SEC said.
EchoStar adds Katrina relief station to Dish
EchoStar Communications Corp. said Thursday it has added a channel dedicated to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts to the Dish Network satellite television service.
The Katrina Information Network, developed by Washington, D.C-based Flying Colors Broadcasts, will be available to Dish customers free while the Gulf Coast is rebuilding. The channel broadcasts updates from relief agencies as well as key information such as telephone numbers and a survivors list, EchoStar said.
DIA down two slots to 7th-busiest airport
In the first half of the year, Denver International Airport was ranked the seventh-busiest airport based on the number of domestic passengers boarding planes, according to data released Thursday by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
That’s down from Denver’s No. 5 ranking in the same period a year ago. Las Vegas McCarran International and Phoenix Sky Harbor International pulled ahead of Denver in the past year.
In the first six months of the year, the number of domestic passengers U.S. airlines carried nationwide increased 5.4 percent from the same period a year earlier. While other major airlines had an increase in domestic passengers, United Airlines carried fewer domestic passengers in the first half of 2005 than in the first half of 2004.
Red Robin settles religious-bias suit
Greenwood Village-based Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a religious-discrimination lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after a former waiter in Bellevue, Wash., said he was asked to cover his religious tattoos.
In a statement issued Thursday, the company said it believed the case was without merit but chose to settle so it could focus on its business.
Noodles hires exec, plans Mo. expansion
Boulder-based Noodles & Co. on Thursday said it hired G. Dwayne Chambers as vice president of marketing. Chambers previously worked as vice president of marketing for Greenwood Village-based Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc.
Noodles also announced that Joe Serafin, former vice president of operations, has partnered with Marty Herzog, founder and chief executive of Denver-based J. Herzog & Sons Inc., to open 18 Noodles restaurants throughout St. Louis, Columbia and Springfield, Mo. Serafin and Herzog will operate the venture as North American Dining LLC.
Janus to contribute to research-paper fund
The Financial Planning Association and Denver-based Janus Capital Group Inc. announced Thursday the Financial Frontiers Awards – a competition to encourage research papers that showcase new ideas and practical solutions for helping financial advisers and their clients.
Janus will contribute up to $100,000 to fund the program, which was announced at the FPA’s annual conference in San Diego.
FBI searches law firm in SEC investigation
The FBI confirmed Thursday that agents executed a search warrant at a law firm that once shared an address with a company under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The search Tuesday was at Futro & Associates PC, a Denver law firm headed by former U.S. MedSys Corp. chairman Peter Futro, 62. In February, the company disclosed it was the subject of a formal SEC investigation of unknown scope.
Marsh & McLennan executives charged
Eight former executives at Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. were charged with felonies in indictments unsealed Thursday in New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer’s investigation of bid rigging and price fixing in the insurance industry.
The former executives were accused of colluding with brokers and executives at major insurance companies to arrange noncompetitive bids for corporate customers of Marsh & McLennan.
Gold reaches highest price in 17 years
Gold climbed to its highest price in 17 years, extending a rally begun in July. Gold futures for December delivery rose $5.60 to close at $459.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
