Securities Fraud Lawyer Blog
Peter Lewis Morgan Stanley broker TSLA option trading investigation
The securities attorneys at The Law Office of David Liebrader have opened an investigation into the securities related conduct of Peter Lewis a registered representative affiliated with the Morgan Stanley office in Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada.
The pending customer dispute that gives rise to this investigation concerns a number of high risk option trades in TSLA Motors that Peter Lewis made for a customer while at Morgan Stanley in the Fall of 2016. TSLA is a growth stock that has enjoyed significant price appreciation over the past several years. The pending customer complaint describes an environment where Mr. Lewis was particularly negative on TSLA Motors, and made sizeable “bearish” options transactions in the customer’s account. These trades resulted in significant losses.
In addition to the TSLA losses, the client reports excessive trading, amounting to 19 times turnover in the account. Turnover measures the number of times that investment positions in an account are replaced each year. Industry averages are 1.2 x per year. In this customer’s case the turnover ratio far exceeded industry standards. Furthermore, the cost to equity ratio in the account was 13.5 meaning the client needed to make a 13.5% return just to break even.
Option trading is not suitable for all customers. Before entering into an option trading program the registered rep and the brokerage firm must establish that the trading will be suitable for the client. Furthermore, firms must take steps to ensure that accounts are not excessively traded (or “churned”) and that the rep is not making “wholesale recommendations” of particular stocks or trades to his clients.
Peter Lewis registration and disciplinary history
In order to lawfully sell investments to the public, a registered rep must either be registered or exempt from registration. FINRA maintains a database that the public can access to check the credentials of firms and their financial advisors. The website, also known as broker check has a listing for Peter Lewis, who has been the subject of one customer complaint.
If you suffered investment losses or have had your account excessively traded please call The Law Office of David Liebrader at (702) 380-3131 for a free, confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights and options. Our firm takes cases on a straight contingency fee, with no money up front, and no money owed unless there is a recovery.
There is no charge for the initial consultation, so call (702) 380-3131 today to speak with an experienced securities attorney who will fight to recover your losses.
The Law Office of David Liebrader practices exclusively in the field of investment loss recovery. For the past 25 years, we have dedicated our law practice to assisting investors who have been victims of investment fraud via fraudulent and unsuitable investment transactions. During that time we have recovered money for over one thousand individuals, pension plans, trusts and companies. The recoveries we have obtained via judgments, awards and settlements on behalf of our clients exceed $40,000,000.