By Nathan Vifflin
(Reuters) -STMicroelectronics’ supervisory board on Thursday denied allegations of insider trading concerning two members of the European chipmaker’s managing board.
The statement came a day after Italy’s economy minister Giancarlo Giorgetti accused STMicro’s management of having sold shares it held a day before reporting negative results.
“Stock sales done during company’s blackout period were made by company’s stock plan administrator, through an automatic procedure,” STMicro said in the statement.
Giorgetti also said the Italian government opposes STMicro’s CEO Jean-Marc Chery. The Italian and French governments own a combined 27.5% share in the chipmaker through a holding company.
STMicro is also facing a class action lawsuit in the U.S. saying the company had deceived investors by withholding information on the health of the business.
The supervisory board said it had “good defense” against the lawsuit.
European chipmakers, including STMicro, are facing a downturn in their strongholds of automotive and industrial markets.
During STMicro’s second-quarter earnings reporting in 2024, the company made what an analyst described a “massive” cut to its annual guidance, sending its shares sharply lower.
STMicro lowered the outlook again in October, a third time for the same year, and then postponed the publication of its 2025 targets in January. It has not specified when it will provide those targets.
(Reporting by Nathan Vifflin in Gdansk, editing by Milla Nissi)
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