SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP announces that it filed a securities class action case on behalf of purchasers of Ascena Retail Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASNA) securities between September 16, 2015 and June 8, 2017 (the “Class Period”) in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, captioned Newman v. Ascena Retail Group, Inc., No. 2:19-cv-13529, and assigned to Judge McNulty. The complaint charges Ascena and two of its executive officers with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who purchased Ascena securities during the Class Period to seek appointment as lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff acts on behalf of all other class members in directing the litigation. The lead plaintiff can select a law firm of its choice. An investor’s ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff or have questions concerning your rights, please contact Brian Cochran at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at bcochran@rgrdlaw.com. Lead plaintiff motions must be filed with the court no later than August 6, 2019.
Ascena is a leading national specialty retailer of apparel for women and tween girls. In August 2015, Ascena completed the acquisition of ANN Inc., the parent company of Ann Taylor and LOFT (the “ANN Acquisition”). The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, defendants failed to disclose that the ANN Acquisition was a complete disaster for the Company as ANN’s operations were in far worse condition than had been represented to the public; that, to mask ANN’s true condition, defendants improperly delayed recognizing an impairment charge to the value of ANN’s goodwill and, as a result, Ascena’s reported income and assets were materially overstated and the Company’s financial results were not prepared in conformity with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”); and that many of the brands acquired in the ANN Acquisition were in steep decline and were also materially overvalued on Ascena’s financial statements. As a result of this information being withheld from the market, the price of Ascena common stock was artificially inflated to more than $14 per share during the Class Period.
On May 17, 2017, Ascena announced that it was revising its third quarter and full year 2017 sales and earnings outlook due to “a period of unprecedented secular change that is disruptive to traditional business models” and that the Company would be taking an impairment charge. On this news, the price of Ascena stock declined 26% to close at $2.06 per share. A few weeks later, Ascena announced its third quarter 2017 financial results on June 8, 2017, reporting a GAAP loss of $5.29 per diluted share compared to net earnings of $0.08 per diluted share in the year-ago period. The loss included a non-cash pre-tax impairment charge of $1.324 billion (after tax impact of $5.22 per diluted share) to write down a portion of the Company’s goodwill and other intangible assets.
Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP is one of the world’s leading law firms representing investors in securities litigation. With 200 lawyers in 9 offices, Robbins Geller has obtained many of the largest securities class action recoveries in history. For six consecutive years, ISS Securities Class Action Services has ranked the Firm in its annual SCAS Top 50 Report as one of the top law firms in the world in both amount recovered for shareholders and total number of class action settlements. Robbins Geller attorneys have helped shape the securities laws and have recovered tens of billions of dollars on behalf of aggrieved victims. Beyond securing financial recoveries for defrauded investors, Robbins Geller also specializes in implementing corporate governance reforms, helping to improve the financial markets for investors worldwide. Robbins Geller attorneys are consistently recognized by courts, professional organizations and the media as leading lawyers in the industry. Please visit http://www.rgrdlaw.com for more information.
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