Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. Reminds Investors That Class Action Lawsuits Have Been Filed Against Velodyne Lidar, Renewable Energy Group, Athenex, and Ontrak and Encourages Investors to Contact the Firm


NEW YORK, April 07, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm, reminds investors that class actions have been commenced on behalf of stockholders of Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (NASDAQ: VLDR), Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGI), Athenex, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATNX), and Ontrak, Inc. (NASDAQ: OTRK). Stockholders have until the deadlines below to petition the court to serve as lead plaintiff. Additional information about each case can be found at the link provided.

Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (NASDAQ: VLDR)

Class Period: July 2, 2020 to March 17, 2021

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: May 3, 2021

On February 22, 2021, Velodyne announced that the Board had “removed David Hall as Chairman of the Board and terminated Marta Hall’s employment as Chief Marketing Officer of the Company” after the Audit Committee’s investigation “concluded that Mr. Hall and Ms. Hall each behaved inappropriately with regard to certain Board and Company processes, and failed to operate with respect, honesty, integrity, and candor in their dealings with Company officers and directors.” In addition, the Company announced that Velodyne’s Board formally censured Mr. Hall and Ms. Hall, but that they would remain directors of Velodyne.

On this news, Velodyne’s common stock fell $3.14, or approximately 15%, to close at $17.97 per share on February 22, 2021. Additionally, Velodyne’s warrants fell $1.47, or approximately 20%, to close at $5.90 per warrant on February 22, 2021.

The complaint, filed on March 2, 2021, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (1) that certain of Velodyne’s directors had failed to operate with respect, honesty, integrity, and candor in their dealings with the Company’s officers and directors; (2) that the Company was investigating the foregoing matters; and (3) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked reasonable basis at all relevant times.

For more information on the Velodyne class action go to: https://bespc.com/cases/VLDR

Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGI)

Class Period: May 3, 2018 to February 25, 2021

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: May 3, 2021

On February 25, 2021, Renewable Energy issued a press release announcing its fourth quarter and full year 2020 financial results. Therein, the Company revealed that it would restate “$38.2 million in cumulative revenue from January 2018 through September 30, 2020” because Renewable Energy was not the “proper claimant for certain BTC payments on biodiesel it sold between January 1, 2017 and September 30, 2020.” Renewable Energy further stated that it had reached an agreement with the Internal Revenue Service “on a $40.5 million assessment, excluding interest” to correct these claims.

On this news, the Company’s share price fell $8.17, or 9.5%, over two consecutive trading sessions to close at $77.77 per share on February 26, 2021.

The complaint, filed on March 2, 2021, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that due to failures in the diesel additive system, petroleum diesel was not periodically added to certain loads by the Company and was instead added by the Company’s customers; (2) that, as a result, Renewable Energy was not the proper claimant for certain BTC payments on biodiesel it sold between January 1, 2017 and September 30, 2020; (3) that, as a result, Renewable Energy’s revenue and net income were overstated for certain periods; (4) that there was a material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting related to the purchase and use of the petroleum diesel gallons when blending with biodiesel; and (5) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.

For more information on the Renewable Energy Group class action go to: https://bespc.com/cases/REGI

Athenex, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATNX)

Class Period: August 7, 2019 to Februrary 26, 2021

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: May 3, 2021

On March 1, 2021, Athenex announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a complete response letter (CRL) for the company's New Drug Application for oral paclitaxel plus encequidar for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. In the CRL, the FDA cited safety risks to patients and uncertainty over the results of the primary endpoint of the objective response rate (ORR) which might have introduced unmeasured bias and influence on the blinded independent central review. The FDA further recommended that “Athenex conduct a new adequate and well-conducted clinical trial in a patient population with metastatic breast cancer representative of the population in the U.S.” The FDA also noted that additional risk mitigation strategies to improve toxicity would be required for this cancer treatment to be approved. 

On this news, shares of Athenex stock fell approximately 55% in one day, to close at $5.46 per share.

The complaint, filed on March 3, 2021, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company’s business. Specifically, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) the data included in the Oral Paclitaxel plus Encequidar NDA presented a safety risk to patients in terms of an increase in neutropenia-related sequalae; (ii) the uncertainty over the results of the primary endpoint of objective response rate (ORR) at week 19 conducted by BICR; (iii) the BICR reconciliation and re-read process may have introduced unmeasured bias and influence on the BICR; (iv) that the Company’s Phase 3 study that was used to file the NDA was inadequate and not well-conducted in a patient population with metastatic breast cancer representative of the U.S. population, such that the FDA would recommended a new such clinical trial; (v) as a result, it was foreseeable that the FDA would not approve the Company’s NDA in its current form; and (vi) as a result, the Company’s public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. 

For more information on the Athenex class action go to: https://bespc.com/cases/ATNX

Ontrak, Inc. (NASDAQ: OTRK)

Class Period: November 5, 2020 to February 26, 2021

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: May 3, 2021

On March 1, 2021, Ontrak issued a press release announcing preliminary financial results for fourth quarter and full year 2020. Therein, the Company stated that its largest customer had terminated its contract with Ontrak, effective June 26, 2021. The Company stated that this customer “evaluated Ontrak on a provider basis” and “[a]s such, the customer evaluated [Ontrak’s] performance based on [its] ability to achieve the lowest possible cost per medical visit, and not on [its] clinical outcomes data or medical cost savings.” The Company also stated that “the coaching model which Ontrak has pioneered for over a decade was seen by the customer to be less relevant to their performance metrics.”

On this news, the Company’s share price fell $27.32, or more than 46%, to close at $31.62 per share on March 1, 2021.

The complaint, filed on March 3, 2021, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that Ontrak’s largest customer evaluated the Company on a provider basis, valuing Ontrak’s performance based on achieving the lowest cost per medical visit rather than clinical outcomes or medical cost savings; (2) that, as a result, Ontrak’s largest customer did not find the Company’s program to be effective and was reasonably likely to terminate its contract with Ontrak; (3) that, because this customer accounted for a significant portion of the Company’s revenue, the loss of the customer would have an outsized impact on Ontrak’s financial results; and (4) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.

For more information on the Ontrak class action go to: https://bespc.com/cases/OTRK

About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.:
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York, California, and South Carolina. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Contact Information:
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.
Brandon Walker, Esq.
Melissa Fortunato, Esq.
Marion Passmore, Esq.
(212) 355-4648
investigations@bespc.com
www.bespc.com