Insider-Trading Case Settled; 8 Give Up Profits

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Wednesday that an employee of a company that once printed Value Line’s investment advisory publications illegally supplied advance information to seven other persons, who then illegally traded on the information.

In a civil case brought before the U.S. District Court here, the SEC charged all eight with violating laws against insider trading. The eight, all Connecticut residents, consented to a permanent injunction against such actions without admitting or denying the allegations. They agreed to give up illegal profits totaling $159,943.75

In a telephone interview Wednesday, Arnold Bernhard, 83, the founder and chairman of Value Line, which manages mutual funds and operates a highly respected investment advisory service, said: “I’m glad to be able to say that none of our people were involved. We have cooperated with the authorities in this case.”

Bernhard said the printing company, Perry Trumbull Printing of Trumbull, Conn., a subsidiary of the Perry Organization of Waterloo, Wisc., had not printed the Value Line newsletters for more than a year. The alleged violations took place from late 1982 through 1983.

The suit charged that MaryAnn Sarzynski, who worked at Trumbell Printing, “had direct access to copies of the Value Line publications shortly after they were printed and several days prior to their being received by Value Line subscribers through the mail.”

It charged that she told her husband, Charles, about the publications’ recommendations and that he subsequently received $2,700 from Ralph Anderson of North Haven, another defendant, as his share of the profits acquired from trading on the information. Anderson agreed to give up profits of $66,050. The other defendants were James Crocicchia of Southbury, who will give up $14,912.50; Gary Frost of Milford, $3,350; Donald Grady of West Haven, $10,812.50; Paul Smith of Orange, $38,337.50, and Anthony Dicerto of Norwalk, $23,781.25.

None of these defendants could be reached for comment Wednesday. Reached by telephone at the Sarzynski residence in Trumbull, a man identifying himself as Charles Sarzynski said: “No comment.”

Times staff writer Tony Robinson also contributed to this article.