HP CEO denies 'bullet dodging' with stock sale

A pair of Democratic congressman from Michigan are asking Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd to explain why he cashed in more than a $1 million worth of stock options just before a scandal concerning boardroom leaks became public.

In their letter, which was written on Dec. 12 and released this week, U.S. Reps. John Dingell and Bart Stupak, who sit on a panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee that is investigating the Palo Alto, Calif. company, wrote to Hurd to explain the $1.37 million transaction. "In that regard, it appears from the enclosed chart on HP executive trading, that you voluntarily cashed in $1.37 million worth of options on August 25, 2006, the very same day that you were questioned by Wilson Sonsini attorneys who were 'investigating the investigation,'" the two congressman wrote in the letter.

The letter indicates that Hurd cashed in his stock options just before a Sept. 6 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange first detailed that the company had started a far-ranging probe to find the source of leaks from the company's boardroom to various media organizations. On Dec. 14, an HP spokesperson told eWEEK: "This is not a new matter and we look forward to responding to the committee's inquiry."

In their letter, Dingell and Stupak question the timing of the stock sale. The two congressmen write that there has been a number of "backdating" scandals at large companies, which "have raised questions about whether executives are cashing in ('bullet dodging') while in possession of potentially damaging material facts that shareholders do not know." The letter asks for a response from Hurd and HP by Dec. 21.

Hurd said in his anwer that the sale was prearranged and part of an ongoing investment strategy. He wrote that the sale of 100,000 shares on August 25 represented only 5 percent of his HP holdings and noted that Wall Street had yet to punish the company's stock over the spying scandal.

"HP's stock has risen by more than $5 per share since the date of the trade," Hurd wrote in the letter. "My August trade was not a case of bullet-dodging."

Here is Mark Hurd answering letter !