Trouble for Andy Again

Shipbuilder Andrew Jackson Higgins Sr. had hoped to let the public in on what he considered a good thing; he wanted to sell it $9,900,000 in stock in his new company. Last week, the Securities & Exchange Commission tripped up fast-moving Mr. Higgins. SEC found that Manhattan's Van Alstyne Noel & Co. (TIME, Feb. 18), which was to get $90,000 for handling 100,000 shares of the issue, had sold stock before the registration statement had been approved by SEC. Actually, said SEC, stock was sold before the statement was even filed.

For this, SEC suspended Van Alstyne Noel for ten days from the National Association of Security Dealers, Inc., in effect, barred it from underwriting for that period. Andy would have to find another broker. And Wall Streeters now might not be so eager to buy his stock.

Since then, RFC has turned down Andy's bid for New Orleans' huge Michaud plant, in which he planned to make boats; the Federal Housing Administration has shown little interest in his grandiose plan to make houses out of a new Higgins material, enameled steel & concrete. And the stockmarket has slumped.

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