BALA CYNWYD, Pa., Aug. 13, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- A shareholder sued PerkinElmer, Inc. ("PerkinElmer" or the "Company") (NYSE:PKI) claiming that the company misled investors about its business and financial condition, as alleged in a complaint filed by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP.
The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and seeks damages for violations of federal securities laws on behalf of all investors who bought PerkinElmer, Inc. securities between July 15, 2001 and April 11, 2002 (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 PerkinElmer, Inc. and want to learn more about this lawsuit and about becoming a lead plaintiff, you may visit our website at http://www.sbclasslaw.com/cgi/signup.cgi.
The complaint alleges that the Massachusetts-based PerkinElmer, Inc. numerous press releases regarding its performance during the Class Period which represented that the Company was successfully growing its revenues and earnings, that the Company's transformation into a provider of health-related products and services was proceeding successfully and that the Company would meet its financial performance targets for 2002. The complaint further alleges that these, and other, representations were materially false and misleading because they failed to disclose that PerkinElmer was experiencing a decline in the demand for its products, especially at its Optoeletronics division, the Company was carrying tens of millions of dollars of obsolete inventory on its books and the Company's expenses were soaring due to the spate of numerous acquisitions and divestitures it had undertaken. On March 1, 2002, PerkinElmer issued a press release revealing that first quarter of 2002 revenues and earnings would be materially less than the Company had represented its figures would be only three weeks earlier. In reaction to the announcement, the price of PerkinElmer's common stock plummeted by 31%. The full truth regarding PerkinElmer's business was not fully disclosed until April 11, 2002, when the Company issued a press release revealing that its reported earnings will be breakeven, instead of the figure of $0.16-$0.17 per share that the Company had stated, on March 1, it expects to earn, and that its revenues will decline in the first quarter of 2002 because of weakness in all of its division. In reaction to the announcement, PerkinElmer's stock plummeted by another 28%, falling from $16.70 per share on April 10, 2002 to $12.04 by the close of April 11, on extremely heavy trading volume. The individual defendants and other PerkinElmer insiders sold a total of 595,000 PerkinElmer common stock during the Class Period, reaping gross proceeds in excess of $18.4 million and the Company completed a significant acquisition using its common stock as currency.
If you purchased PerkinElmer, Inc. securities between July 15, 2001 and April 11, 2002, you may be a member of the class and have until September 6, 2002 to move the court to become a lead plaintiff. To learn more about your rights and interests in this case and your ability to potentially recoup your losses, please contact Schiffrin & Barroway 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.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca