PHILADELPHIA, July 28, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- On July 27, 2004, the law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. (http://www.bergermontague.com) filed a class action suit against NBTY, Inc. ("NBTY" or the "Company") (NYSE:NTY) and certain of its officers, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased NBTY securities from April 22, 2004 through July 22, 2004 (the "Class Period").
The complaint alleges that defendants violated Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder by the SEC by issuing materially false and misleading statements throughout the Class Period that had the effect of artificially inflating the market price of the Company's securities.
The complaint charges that NBTY, Scott Rudolf, and Harvey Kamil violated the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. More specifically, the Complaint alleges that the Company failed to disclose and/or misrepresented that the Company's increased financial results over the prior year was attributable to a shift in the timing of a promotional mailing and was not attributable to any long-term improvement at the Company. As a result, defendants' positive statements concerning the Company's prospects were lacking in a reasonable basis at all relevant times.
On June 17, 2004, the Company announced that its Direct Response and Vitamin World operations had experienced lower sales for the two-month period ending May 31, 2004. When this information was belatedly disclosed to the market on June 17, 2004, shares of NBTY common stock fell $9.51 per share, or 26%, to close at $26.99 per share, on extremely high trading volume.
On July 22, 2004, NBTY reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter financial results. The Company posted third-quarter earnings of 37 cents a share on sales of $400 million. Analysts polled by Thomson First Call had expected it to earn 48 cents a share on sales of $416.4 million. Weakness in the company's Vitamin World unit contributed to the third-quarter shortfall. A year ago, NBTY earned pro forma earnings of 37 cents a share on sales of $308 million. Shares of NBTY traded down $4.82, or 19.7%, to $19.68.
If you purchased NBTY securities during the period from April 22, 2004 through July 22, 2004, inclusive, you may, no later than August 23, 2004, move to be appointed as a Lead Plaintiff. A Lead Plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. If you have sustained substantial losses in NBTY securities during the Class Period, please contact Berger & Montague, P.C. for a more thorough explanation of the Lead Plaintiff selection process.
The law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. has over 50 attorneys, all of whom represent plaintiffs in complex litigation. The Berger firm has extensive experience representing plaintiffs in class action securities litigation and has played lead roles in major cases over the past 25 years which have resulted in recoveries of several billion dollars to investors. The firm has represented investors as lead counsel in actions against companies including Rite Aid, Sotheby's, Waste Management, Inc., Sunbeam, Boston Chicken and IKON Office Solutions, Inc. The standing of Berger & Montague, P.C. in successfully conducting major securities and antitrust litigation has been recognized by numerous courts. For example:
"Class counsel did a remarkable job in representing the class
interests." In Re: IKON Offices Solutions Securities Litigation.
Civil Action No. 98-4286(E.D. Pa.) (partial settlement for
$111 million approved May, 2000).
"...(Y)ou have acted the way lawyers at their best ought to act.
And I have had a lot of cases ... in 15 years now as a judge and
I cannot recall a significant case where I felt people were
better represented than they are here ... I would say this has
been the best representation that I have seen." In Re: Waste
Management, Inc. Securities Litigation, Civil Action
No. 97-C 7709 (N.D. Ill.) (settled in 1999 for $220 million).
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca.
If you purchased NBTY securities during the Class Period, please visit our website at www.bergermontague.com to view the complaint and join the class action or if you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights with respect to this matter, please contact:
Sherrie R. Savett, Esquire Douglas M. Risen, Esquire Diane Werwinski, Investor Relations Manager Berger & Montague, P.C. 1622 Locust Street Philadelphia, PA 19103 Phone: 888-891-2289 or 215-875-3000 Fax: 215-875-5715 Website: http://www.bergermontague.com e-mail: InvestorProtect@bm.net