According to reports, the US Department of Justice is investigating the super micro computer, a server manufacturer of artificial intelligence (AI), on suspicion of accounting irregularities; Just a month ago, the well-known short-selling institution, Hindenburg Research, announced a short position on the company.
Caixin Media reported on September 27 (Editor Xia Junxiong) that according to sources, the US Department of Justice is investigating the super micro computer, a server manufacturer of artificial intelligence (AI), for suspected accounting irregularities. Just a month ago, the well-known short-selling institution Hindenburg Research announced a short position on the company.
Impacted by this news, the stock price of super micro computer plummeted nearly 17% on Thursday, leading to multiple trading halts due to excessive decline.
Insiders revealed that the investigation is still in its early stages, with a prosecutor from the US San Francisco Attorney's Office recently reaching out to individuals who may have relevant information.
The prosecutor requested information that appears to be related to a former employee who accused super micro computer of accounting irregularities. In April this year, the former employee filed a whistleblower lawsuit against super micro computer and its CEO, Liang Jianhao.
On August 27, Hindenburg Research released a report on super micro computer, stating that they have taken a short position in the company's stocks. The report focused on the accusations made by former super micro computer employee Bob Luong, as well as the transactions between the company and the family members of Liang Jianhao.
Luong previously served as the global service general manager of super micro computer, accusing the company of manipulating accounting reports. His accusations became a key basis for Hindenburg's short report.
The day after Hindenburg released the report, super micro computer announced a delay in the disclosure of its full-year financial report. The super micro computer board of directors subsequently established a committee to review certain internal controls and other matters within the company. The company has not yet submitted its annual financial report.
On September 3, Liang Jianhao stated in a letter to customers that the short report "contains false or inaccurate statements about our company", and "we will address these statements at the appropriate time." Liang Jianhao stated that the company does not expect to make any significant adjustments to the financial performance for the 2024 fiscal year that was previously released.
After the rise of the AI trend, the stock price of Super Micro Computer soared, increasing 14 times from the beginning of 2023 to March this year, and then dropped by 59%. At its peak, the market cap of Super Micro Computer reached $66 billion, while before the emergence of the chat robot ChatGPT in November 2022, the company's market cap was only about $5 billion.