SEC Orders Suspension of Trading for 6 Penny Stock Companies

Federal authorities suspended trading of six public companies Friday, an unusually high number for one day.

Securities and Exchange Commission officials ordered standard 10-day suspensions of the six securities, all traded on the National Assn. of Securities Dealers’ OTC Bulletin Board, a largely unregulated market that is mostly the home of high-risk, low-priced stocks. The actions are in effect through Feb. 11.

Five of the firms--Smartek Inc. of Idaho and Citron Inc., Electronic Transfer Associates Inc., Polus Inc. and Invest Holdings Group Inc., all of Colorado--all have issued press releases with a phone number linked to a Georgia stock promotion firm believed to be controlled by a disbarred former broker, Peter C. Tosto.

SEC officials said they issued the suspension orders because of questions about the firms’ publicly disseminated statements, including the accuracy of releases concerning a purported merger involving Smartek and Polus. Smartek’s shares recently surged from $2.38 to $6.75, and Polus’ from $1.06 to $12.

A spokesman for the promotion firm said it would issue a statement later and declined further comment.

Regulators halted trading of the sixth firm, San Diego-based USA Talks.com Inc., because of questions surrounding the “status and extent” of its business operations.

Maggie Yates, marketing director for USA Talks, said it operates an Internet-based telephone network. Yates said the firm could validate statements about its call volume and the amount raised from its investors, which it believes is the subject of the SEC’s concerns.