SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 31, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, a national investor-rights law firm, alerts investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against American Realty Capital Properties, Inc. (Nasdaq:ARCP) ("ARCP" or "the Company"). The suit is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and investors have until December 29, 2014 to move for lead plaintiff.
The complaint has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or otherwise acquired ARCP securities between May 6, 2013 and October 29, 2014, inclusive (the "Class Period"). If your purchases fall in the Class Period, you may contact Hagens Berman Partner Reed Kathrein, who is leading the firm's investigation, by calling (510) 725-3000, emailing ARCP@hbsslaw.com or visiting http://hb-securities.com/investigations/ARCP.
Based in New York, ARCP is a real estate investment trust that acquires, owns and manages single-tenant commercial real estate properties occupied by high credit-quality tenants. According to the complaint, ARCP and certain of its current and former executives have violated the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. On October 29, 2014, ARCP disclosed that its Audit Committee determined that an error in accounting for the Company's adjusted funds from operations ("AFFO") was previously identified within the Company, but was intentionally not corrected. Additionally, other AFFO and financial statement errors were intentionally made, resulting in an overstatement of AFFO and an understatement of ARCP's net loss for the three and six months ended June 30, 2014.
The Company also announced that the previously issued financial statements and other financial information contained in the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2013, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal periods ended March 31, 2014 and June 30, 2014, and the Company's earnings releases and other financial communications for these periods should no longer be relied upon.
Following ARCP's disclosures, its share price fell $2.38 per share, or approximately 19%, from its closing price of $12.38 on the previous trading day, to close at $10.00 on October 29, 2014.
"ARCP's admission that they intentionally hid an accounting error, while admirable, is suspect," said Mr. Kathrein. "First it took the threat of a whistleblower who could have gone to the SEC. Second, you have to ask why they would hide an alleged error. I think we will have more facts coming forward as our investigation continues."
If you suffered a loss from your investment in ARCP securities purchased on or during the period between May 6, 2013 and October 29, 2014, and would like to learn more about this lawsuit and your ability to participate as a lead plaintiff, please contact us for your no-cost evaluation. No class has yet been certified in the above action.
Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding ARCP should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at (510) 725-3000 or email ARCP@hbsslaw.com.
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP is an investor-rights class-action law firm with offices in nine cities. The firm represents investors, whistleblowers, workers and consumers in complex litigation. More about the firm and its successes can be found at www.hbsslaw.com. Read the firm's Securities Newsletter at http://www.hb-securities.com/newsletter. The firm's blog is located at www.meaningfuldisclosure.com.
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