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SAN FRANCISCO : Dell stock regained ground Friday after it agreed to pay 100 million dollars in fines to resolve charges it used payments from Intel to mislead investors about the company's performance.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said Dell accepted money from Intel in exchange for not using chips made by rival maker Advanced Micro Devices.
The regulatory body said Dell then used to payments to make it appear it was meeting Wall Street earnings targets.
"It was these payments rather than the company's management and operations that allowed Dell to meet its earnings targets," the SEC said in a release.
"After Intel cut these payments, Dell again misled investors by not disclosing the true reason behind the company's decreased profitability."
Dell has agreed to pay a 100-million-dollar penalty to settle the charges.
Dell chief executive Michael Dell and former chief executive Kevin Rollins each agreed to pay four million dollars for their roles between 2001 and 2006.
A former chief financial officer at the Texas-based company will pay three million dollars, according to the SEC.
"Accuracy and completeness are the touchstones of public company disclosure under the federal securities laws," SEC division of enforcement director Robert Khuzami said in a statement released on Thursday.
"Michael Dell and other senior Dell executives fell short of that standard repeatedly over many years, and today they are held accountable."
The settlement ends a five-year SEC investigation into aspects of Dell's business relationship with US chip giant Intel, according to Dell board director Sam Nunn.
He said that the board of directors unanimously supports Michael Dell remaining as chief executive.
"We are pleased to have resolved this matter," Michael Dell said in a statement. "We are committed to maintaining clear and accurate reporting of our periodic results, supporting our customers, and executing our growth strategy."
Dell's stock price dipped after the settlement was announced but had climbed to 13.47 dollars as the New York Stock Exchange neared the close of trading on Friday. - AFP/fa
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