Former Pharma Executive And Cousin Plead Guilty To Insider Trading Of Kodak Stock

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the guilty pleas of JAMES ANDREW STILES and EDWARD GRAY STILES in connection with a scheme to commit insider trading based on misappropriated information about potential government loans to be made to the Eastman Kodak Company to finance the production of COVID-19-related pharmaceutical components.  ANDREW STILES and GRAY STILES were arrested in 2023 and pled guilty today to securities fraud based on insider trading before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Andrew Stiles betrayed the trust and confidence of his employer by stealing confidential business information and using it alongside his cousin, Gray Stiles, to make unlawful trades in Kodak’s stock based on inside information.  Even secret codes and lies to regulators could not stop them from getting caught.  No one is above the law, and this Office’s commitment to protecting the integrity of the financial markets remains a priority.”

As alleged in the Indictment, other public court documents, and statements made during court proceedings:

Between June and July 2020, ANDREW STILES conducted an insider trading scheme in which he misappropriated material, non-public information (“MNPI”) and used it to trade in the stock of the Eastman Kodak Company (“Kodak”).  He further provided that MNPI to his cousin, GRAY STILES, so that he would likewise trade on the MNPI.

During that time, ANDREW STILES was an executive at a company (“Company-1”) that was working with Kodak to collaborate on the production of chemicals for pharmaceutical manufacturing in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.  Company-1 was also assisting Kodak in its application for a significant government loan, which ultimately resulted in the news, on July 27, 2020, of a government “letter of interest” to provide Kodak with a loan of $765 million (the “LOI”).  In the following days, Kodak’s stock rose substantially, at one point increasing to more than 2,500% above the closing price prior to the news of the LOI.

During June and July 2020, ANDREW STILES was kept apprised of Kodak’s efforts to obtain the government loan, and he both traded using that non-public information and passed that information to GRAY STILES.  For example, on July 9, 2020, when Kodak had applied for a loan in the amount of $655 million, ANDREW STILES and GRAY STILES exchanged the following coded text messages:

GRAY:           Any update on the film we sent off a few weeks ago to get developed

ANDREW:     600+.  Maybe 2 weeks out

GRAY:            I can live with that hahaha

Between June 2020, after ANDREW STILES learned about the potential loan to Kodak, and July 27, 2020, the date the LOI was first publicized, ANDREW STILES purchased more than 90,000 shares of Kodak stock, including multiple purchases the day before the LOI was scheduled to be announced.  GRAY STILES purchased more than 30,000 shares, more than half of which were purchased the day prior to the scheduled announcement of the LOI.  In fact, on July 27, 2020, ANDREW STILES texted GRAY STILES, “Tmw,” indicating the expected date of the announcement.  Less than one minute later, GRAY STILES responded, “Hot damn.”  Following that exchange, and before the news was announced, ANDREW STILES and GRAY STILES each purchased more than 10,000 additional shares. 

ANDREW STILES and GRAY STILES each sold the entirety of their shares in the days and weeks after the announcement.  ANDREW STILES realized profits of more than $500,000, and GRAY STILES realized profits of more than $700,000.

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ANDREW STILES, 38, of Charleston, South Carolina, and GRAY STILES, 39, of Richmond, Virginia, each pled guilty to one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex Rossmiller, Nicolas Roos, and Allison Nichols are in charge of the prosecution.