Analyst Fired After Trump Critique

A brokerage house that fired a gaming industry analyst who issued a negative critique of Donald J. Trump’s newest casino project has tarnished its image and increased skepticism about investment advice, industry observers said Monday.

Marvin Roffman, an analyst for 16 years with Janney Montgomery Scott Inc., was fired last Friday. Roffman said he had refused Trump’s demand that he retract comments made to the Wall Street Journal about what he deemed gloomy prospects for Trump’s Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J.

Janney Montgomery stated Monday that Roffman was fired for violating company policies, not because of his negative public comments about the Taj Mahal. But a number of experts said the dispute highlighted doubts that many investors had about the validity of securities firm research.

“This should make the individual investor more skeptical about Wall Street research,” said James J. Cramer, president of Cramer & Co. an investment management firm in New York. “This event crystallizes the skepticism about research.”

“Most people think analysts are independent, understand their industries and do tough analysis,” Cramer said. “It’s just not true. Most analysts can’t afford to be independent.”

Robert Sobel, a professor of business history at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., said similar actions have been taken against analysts and stockbrokers before, but they usually are not publicly disclosed.