Lumber Liquidators' Stock Jumps After Sentencing For Importing Illegal Wood

Shares of Lumber Liquidators Inc. soared 10% in midday trade Monday, after the wood-flooring company was sentenced for importing illegal wood. The stock has now run up 22% since Jan. 19, when it closed at the lowest level seen since March 25, 2009, but was still down 77% over the past year. The company was sentenced to $13.2 million in fines and forfeitures for violations of the Lacey Act, which includes importing illegal wood and submitting false declarations, according to the Environmental Investigation Agency. The company was not immediately available for comment. When Lumber Liquidators pleaded guilty in October 2015 to environmental crimes, the Dept. of Justice said the company would pay $13.15 million as part of a plea deal. The penalties Lumber Liquidators will pay as part of Monday's sentencing include $7.8 million in criminal fines, $1.23 million in community service payments, nearly $1 million in forfeited proceeds and $3.15 million related to a civil forfeiture, EIA said. "The real cost to the company will come from having to forego cheap, stolen wood in its supply chain while the Department of Justice looks over its shoulder," said EIA Executive Director Alexander von Bismarck. The sentencing is not related to a "60 Minutes" report in early 2015, that alleged the company sold wood flooring from China with high-levels of a cancer-causing agent.