By Jonathan Berr
Bloomberg News

SCO Group executives have sold about 119,000 shares of their company since it filed a lawsuit against IBM in March and the stock price increased more than fourfold.

The company has accused IBM of illegally transferring software from the Unix operating system into Linux. SCO bought licensing rights to Unix in 1995 and is threatening to sue other companies that use Linux, which IBM backs as a cheaper alternative to Microsoft's Windows program.

Chief Financial Officer Robert Bench began the $1.2 million in executive share sales four days after Lindon -based SCO filed its lawsuit against Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM on March 6. Before Bench's sale, SCO insiders had not sold shares in more than a year, according to the Washington Service, a firm that tracks insider transactions.

"Insider sales picking up is a negative sign," said Richard Campagna, who helps manage $750 million as director of research for Cleveland-based Shaker Investments. Shaker, which owns no shares of SCO, has stakes in computer-related companies including Flextronics International.