Can you control for rumors in your firm?

The time-honored practice of market chatter and gossip may pose as something of a regulatory issue for a lot of Wall Street firms, on the sell-side and the buy-side. The fear is that the SEC intends to hold more companies accountable for rumors designed to tank a stock. Subpoenas have been flying. And we've already seen one enforcement action against an alleged rumor-monger. The SEC is taking a look at policies that firms have in place regarding rumors. One consequence, as TheStreet.com notes, is that more firms are telling their analysts not to be so chatty with journalists. This of course is bad news for any reporter digging for information about companies. The buy-side was often a great source. We'll see if this blows over, but I think we may see more companies issue formal guidelines about information sharing with outsiders. 

For more:
- here's the article from TheStreet.com