BALA CYNWYD, Pa., Feb. 4, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Shareholders of APW, Ltd. (NYSE:APW) ("APW" or the "Company") who desire to serve as a lead plaintiff in a shareholder class action lawsuit now pending in federal court in Wisconsin (01-C-1263) must submit an application with the Court by February 8, 2002 according to the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP.
The lawsuit seeks damages for violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all investors who purchased APW, Ltd. securities between September 26, 2000 and March 20, 2001 (the "Class Period").
Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP has prosecuted shareholder class actions for over fourteen years and has recovered more than $1 billion for investors. If you are a shareholder of APW, Ltd. and want to learn more about this lawsuit and about becoming a lead plaintiff, you may visit our website at www.sbclasslaw.com.
The complaint alleges that the Wisconsin-based APW, Ltd. repeatedly issued statements indicating that, among other things, the Company was growing at a rapid pace, due, in significant part, to strong demand for its product offerings by its customers. The complaint alleges that these statements were materially false and misleading because, among other things, they failed to disclose or misrepresented that (a) in fact, the Company was experiencing decreased demand for its products as its primary customers were substantially decreasing their orders; (b) due to the declining demand, APW's customers were overstocked with APW products and, accordingly, would be decreasing their orders in the future while they worked down their bloated inventories; and (c) in response to these negative factors, APW was attempting to slash costs and, in this regard, had started to reduce its workforce.
On March 20, 2001, defendants finally disclosed this information and reported that the Company's sales growth had slowed dramatically and reported a loss of $0.15 per share, compared to analysts' expectations of a $0.27 per share profit. Defendants also disclosed that the Company's reduced performance, combined with other factors, caused the Company to be in breach of certain covenants in its credit agreement. In response to this announcement, the price of APW common stock dropped from $20.65 per share on March 20, 2001, to close at $7.39 per share on March 21, 2001. Prior to this disclosure, defendant William P. Albrecht was able to sell shares of his personally-held stock for gross proceeds of more than $1.7 million and the Company was able to complete its acquisition of Mayville Metal Products, which was partially paid for using the Company's stock as currency.
If you purchased APW, Ltd. securities between September 26, 2000 and March 20, 2001, you may be a member of the class and have until February 8, 2002 to move the court to become a lead plaintiff. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. To be a member of the class, however, you do not need to take any action at this time. Should you decide to seek appointment as a lead plaintiff, you may retain Schiffrin & Barroway, or retain counsel of your choice.
To learn more about your rights and interests in this case and your ability to potentially recoup your losses, please contact Schiffrin & Barroway (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Stuart L. Berman, Esq.) directly at 888-299-7706 (toll free) or 610-822-2221, fax number 610-822-0002, e-mail at info@sbclasslaw.com or visit our website at www.sbclasslaw.com.