NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. reminds investors that class action lawsuits have been commenced on behalf of stockholders of Evolent Health, Inc. EVH, International Flavors and Fragrances IFF, Granite Construction, Inc. GVA, and Pluralsight, Inc. PS. Stockholders have until the deadlines below to petition the court to serve as lead plaintiff. Additional information about each case can be found at the link provided.
Evolent Health, Inc. EVH
Class Period: March 3, 2017 to May 28, 2019
Lead plaintiff deadline: October 7, 2019
The complaint, filed on August 8, 2019, alleges that during the Class Period, defendants issued a series of false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about Evolent's business, operations, and prospects, including Evolent's "partnership" with Passport specifically. Among other things, defendants mispresented and failed to disclose that: (1) Evolent's partnership model did not align the company's interests with those of its partners, as the model was designed to inflate the Company's revenue by extracting enormous administrative and management fees at the expense of its operating partners such as Passport; (2) Passport was struggling financially, particularly after Kentucky cut its reimbursement rates, and the partnership between Evolent and Passport was becoming increasingly unsustainable; (3) Evolent was draining Passport of functions, employees and money, to such an extent that Passport was left on the verge of insolvency; (4) Passport was conducting a bidding process for several months to sell itself to prevent liquidation; and (5) as a result of the foregoing, defendants' public statements were materially false and/or misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.
Ultimately, on May 29, 2019, Evolent shocked investors when it unexpectedly announced that it was buying a controlling interest in Passport, which was essentially a bailout of the financially distressed health plan. Evolent acquired Passport despite previously stating that it had no intention of buying Passport or any other health plans for the foreseeable future, and that acquiring health plans was not part of its strategic focus. In addition, Evolent admitted that Passport was performing poorly and was not being run or managed properly, despite paying massive management fees to Evolent for what was previously understood by investors to be an aligned relationship. In reaction to these disclosures, Evolent's stock price plummeted nearly 30%, to close at $10.10 on May 29, 2019.
For more information on the Evolent Health class action go to: https://bespc.com/evh
International Flavors and Fragrances IFF
Class Period: May 7, 2018 to August 5, 2019
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: October 11, 2019
The company acquired Frutarom Industries, Ltd. ("Frutarom") in October 2018. On August 5, 2019, after the market closed, the company disclosed that Frutarom had "made improper payments to representatives of a number of customers" in Russia and Ukraine and that "key members of Frutarom's senior management at the time were aware of such payments." The Company also lowered its 2019 financial guidance for sales to a range of $5.15 billion to $5.25 billion, from a range of $5.2 billion to $5.3 billion, and for adjusted earnings per share to a range of $4.85 to $5.05, from $4.90 to $5.10.
On this news, the company's share price fell $22.56 per share, or nearly 16%, to close at $118.91 per share on August 6, 2019.
The complaint, filed on August 12, 2019, alleges that throughout the Class Period, defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that Frutarom had bribed customers in Russia and Ukraine; (2) that senior management at Frutarom were aware of such improper payments; (3) that, as a result, Frutarom's financial results were materially overstated; (4) that, as a result of the improper payments, the Company was reasonably likely to face regulatory scrutiny; (5) that the Company had not completed adequate due diligence before acquiring Frutarom; (6) that, as a result of the foregoing, the Company was unlikely to achieve purported synergies from the acquisition; and (7) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants' positive statements about the Company's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.
For more information on the Flavors and Fragrances class action go to: https://bespc.com/IFF
Granite Construction, Inc. GVA
Class Period: October 28, 2018 to August 1, 2019
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: October 15, 2019
On July 29, 2019, the company disclosed that second quarter 2019 financial results were negatively impacted by non-cash charges related to four civil joint venture projects. As a result, Granite Construction expected to report net loss per diluted share in the range of $2.05 to $2.10 per diluted share.
On this news, the company's stock price fell $7.98 per share, or nearly 18%, to close at $36.49 per share on July 30, 2019.
Then on August 2, 2019, the company announced its second quarter 2019 financial results, reporting revenue of $789.5 million, including $114.2 million in revenue reduction due to the charges disclosed earlier that week.
On this news, the Company's stock price fell $2.78 per share, or over 8%, to close at $31.22 per share on August 2, 2019.
The complaint, filed on August 12, 2019, alleges that throughout the class period, defendants made false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: (1) that the company had assumed certain risks in connection with its heavy civil joint venture projects bid between 2012 and 2014; (2) that there was an "untenable" imbalance of risk sharing between the Company and the joint venture project owners; (3) that, as a result, the company was reasonably likely to incur additional project costs for its joint venture projects; (4) the company was reasonably likely to incur additional costs in connection with certain project disputes; and (5) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants' positive statements about the company's business, operations, and prospects and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.
Pluralsight, Inc. PS
Class Period: August 2, 2018 to July 31, 2019
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: October 15, 2019
The Company completed its initial public offering ("IPO") in May 2018. Less than a year later, Pluralsight completed a secondary public offering ("SPO") on March 6, 2019, wherein it sold 15.6 million shares at a price of $29.25 per share.
On July 31, 2019, Pluralsight announced disappointing financial results for the second quarter, disclosing that its billings growth rate had sharply deteriorated. The Company blamed its declining growth in billings on sales execution challenges and other issues with its salesforce. Pluralsight also disclosed that its Chief Revenue Officer was resigning. In response to these disclosures, Pluralsight's share price declined. The stock price fell $12.13 per share in a single day – a nearly 40% drop – to close at $18.56 per share on August 1, 2019.
The complaint, filed on August 13, 2019, alleges that throughout the Class Period, Pluralsight misrepresented the Company's business outlook, particularly related to the company's salesforce and its ability to generate strong growth in billings. Specifically, the company failed to disclose that Pluralsight was experiencing substantial delays in hiring and properly training the salesforce necessary to meet its billing projections. In addition, the company knew at the time of the SPO that it was behind schedule onboarding new sales representatives, which was hurting the company's sales execution and preventing Pluralsight from meeting its high growth projections. Instead of disclosing such facts at the time of the SPO, and to cash-out at inflated prices, defendants intentionally obscured and omitted this pertinent information from investors.
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a New York-based law firm concentrating in commercial and securities litigation. For additional information about Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. please go to www.bespc.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
Contacts
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.
Brandon Walker, Esq.
Melissa Fortunato, Esq.
(212) 355-4648
investigations@bespc.com
www.bespc.com
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