NEW YORK, April 19, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz Grossman Hufford Dahlstrom & Gross LLP has filed a class action lawsuit against Affymax, Inc. ("Affymax" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:AFFY) and certain of its officers. The class action filed in United States District Court, Central District of California, and docketed under C13-1025 SI, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired securities of Affymax between December 8, 2011 and February 22, 2013, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). This class action seeks to recover damages against the Company and certain of its officers and directors as a result of alleged violations of the federal securities laws pursuant to Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder.
If you are a shareholder who purchased Affymax securities during the Class Period, you have until April 29, 2013 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, x237. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address and telephone number.
Affymax is a Palo Alto-based biopharmaceutical company whose primary drug offering is Omontys (peginesatide) Injection for the treatment of anemia in chronic kidney disease in adult patients on dialysis.
The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants issued materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business practices and financial results. Specifically, defendants failed to disclose that 0.02% of patients who were administered Omontys experienced fatal anaphylaxis reactions. As a result of this false statement, Affymax stock traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period, reaching a high of $27.74 per share in intraday trading on October 17, 2012.
On February 23, 2013, Affymax announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") was requiring a total recall of the drug due to reports of anaphylaxis, with the FDA calling it a "serious and life-threatening" allergic reaction in the agency's statement. "Serious and fatal" hypersensitivity reactions have been reported in some patients within 10 minutes of receiving their first doses of the drug by intravenous injection, the FDA said in its statement. On this news, the price of Affymax stock declined by more than 85%, closing at $2.42 per share, down $14.10 per share from the prior Friday night's close, on unusually high trading volume.
The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and San Diego, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 70 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com.