Ex-state attorney general probes Tech Data CEO's sale of $2m shares

Vast distie investigated over profit bungle

A firm of legal eagles is investigating whether distie giant Tech Data violated state or federal laws by making accounting errors that will wipe millions off its bottom line from recent years.

Kahn Swick & Foti (KSF) is also probing CEO Bob Dutkvsky's offloading of $2m in his firm's shares earlier this month

The US logistics titan, listed on the NASDAQ, revealed last night that it had found vendor accounting "improprieties" largely related to its UK subsidiary Computer 2000.

A subsequent recalculation of Tech Data's financial results for fiscal 2011, 2012 and some or all of 2013 is likely to slash between $25m and $33m off the company's total net profit for that three-year period.

Lawyers at KSF hope to pick up any disgruntled Tech Data investors feeling litigious about the profit-busting accounting mistakes discovered by the distributor.

The legal eagles are trying to ascertain whether Tech Data "violated state or federal securities laws", said KSF.

Former Attorney General of Louisiana Charles Foti has today "commenced an investigation into Tech Data" following the decline of the distributor's share price.

"This investigation also follows the direct sale of over $2m worth of company stock by Tech Data's chief executive Robert Dutkowksy, reported on March 7 2013," Foti's firm added.

A filing by Tech Data with the SEC on 8 March shows Dutkowksy offloaded 4,683 shares at an average sale price of $49.95 apiece, some 29,196 at $50.02 and a 6,121 batch of stock for $50.27, totalling just over $2m.

Tech Data's share price dipped 10.7 per cent to $44.25 in after-hours trading when the accounting problem was announced.

Tech Data refused to comment. ®