NEW YORK, Jan. 03, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- The following statement was issued today by the law firm of Wechsler Harwood LLP:
Notice is hereby given that a class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida on behalf of all purchasers of the common stock of Answerthink, Inc. ("Answerthink" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:ANSR) publicly traded securities during the period between October 17, 2000 and April 25, 2002, inclusive (the "Class Period"). A copy of the complaint filed in this action is available from the Court, or can be viewed on Wechsler Harwood web site at: www.whesq.com
The complaint charges Answerthink, Inc. and certain of its officers and directors with issuing false and misleading statements concerning its business and financial condition and announcing "record" financial results. Specifically, the complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose that the "record" results included revenues recognized from transactions with related parties who were near-bankruptcy and lacked the financial means to finalize the sales. Specifically, in order to boost reported revenues and earnings during the third and fourth quarters of 2000, the Company recognized approximately $16.7 million of revenue in connection with various transactions with related parties who were either facing imminent bankruptcy or were otherwise unable to survive as a going concern and remit the full $16.7 million as promised. As a result, the complaint alleges, defendants were able to report artificially inflated results that permitted defendants Fernandez and Frank to receive performance-based bonuses and allowed certain of the defendants to sell stock at inflated prices. Ultimately, more than $6 million of receivables and worthless stock in one of the related party companies, which was received as partial payment, was written off through a charge to earnings.
On February 7, 2002, when defendants were no longer able to include these illusory revenues in their financial results, the Company reported a huge drop in revenues. As a result, Answerthink investors who purchased stock in reliance on the integrity of defendants' statements and publicly filed financial reports have sustained tremendous losses. Answerthink stock, which traded at $18 per share on October 17, 2000, dramatically declined and traded at only $1.98 per share on November 13, 2002.
If you are a member of the Class described above, and if you meet certain other legal requirements, you may, no later than January 13, 2003, move the Court to serve as a lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances, one or more class members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." The requirements for serving as a lead plaintiff are set forth in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. section 78u-4).
Wechsler Harwood has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of defrauded shareholders. The Wechsler Harwood website (www.whesq.com) has more information about the firm. If you wish to discuss this action with us, or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights and interests with regard to the case, please contact the following:
Wechsler Harwood LLP 488 Madison Avenue, 8th Floor New York, New York 10022 Toll Free Telephone: (877) 935-7400
David Leifer, Wechsler Harwood Shareholder Relations Department: dleifer@whesq.com.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca.