Groupon Stock Hike Probed

Trading spikes ahead of release of strong results
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted May 18, 2012 2:04 AM CDT
Groupon Stock Hike Probed
Groupon's CEO recently described the company to employees as a "toddler in a grown man's body."   (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)

Did Groupon insiders try for a daily deal of their own? A Wall Street regulator is probing some fishy trading activity in the hours before the company released stronger-than-expected financial results earlier this week, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. Shares in the company—which had fallen more than 50% since its IPO in November—surged more than 18% in the hours before the announcement, with 16 million shares trading hands, some four times the daily average. The regulator is considering referring the activity to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the sources say. (More Groupon stories.)

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