BENSALEM, Pa., June 02, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Law Offices of Howard G. Smith reminds investors that class action lawsuits have been filed on behalf of shareholders of the following publicly-traded companies. Investors have until the deadlines listed below to file a lead plaintiff motion.
Investors suffering losses on their investments are encouraged to contact the Law Offices of Howard G. Smith to discuss their legal rights in these class actions at 888-638-4847 or by email to howardsmith@howardsmithlaw.com.
Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG)
Class Period: August 9, 2022 – March 1, 2023
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: June 12, 2023
Shareholders with losses of $25,000 or more are encouraged to contact the firm.
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company was unable to effectively manage its supply chain and product manufacturing, resulting in reduced revenues and margins, increased inventory levels, and several large deals being delayed until at least 2023, among other issues; and (2) as a result, Defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.
Allbirds, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIRD)
Class Period: November 4, 2021 – March 9, 2023
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: June 12, 2023
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: (1) that Allbirds was overemphasizing products that extended beyond the Company’s core offerings; (2) that the Company’s non-core products had a narrower appeal and were not resonating with customers as well as the Company’s core products; (3) that Allbirds was underinvesting in its core consumers’ favorite products to push the Company’s newer products with narrower appeal; (4) that underinvesting in Allbirds’ core products was negatively impacting the Company’s sales; 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.
Vertex Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: VTNR)
Class Period: April 1, 2022 – August 8, 2022
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: June 12, 2023
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) prior to the acquisition of the Mobile refinery, defendants had entered into inventory and crack spread hedging derivatives that significantly capped the profit margins on 50% of the Mobile refinery’s expected output over the period April 1, 2022 to September 30, 2022, affecting over 6.5 million barrels of refined fuel output. These hedges severely limited Vertex’s ability to capitalize on the record-high crack spreads that existed at the time of the acquisition and resulted in over $90 million in losses in the second quarter of fiscal year 2022; (2) prior to the acquisition of the Mobile refinery, defendants had entered into an inventory intermediation agreement with the investment bank Macquarie Group, whereby Macquarie purchased (from third parties), owned, and sold (to Vertex) all crude oil inventory to be used at the Mobile refinery and also purchased (from Vertex), owned, and sold (to third parties) all refined fuel inventory produced at the Mobile refinery. The strict terms of the arrangement, including requiring Vertex to purchase hedges to protect Macquarie’s position in holding the crude and refined inventory, combined with the fact that the oil market was in a state of backwardation in early 2022, resulted in Vertex incurring significant fees and inventory losses. The losses, which began as of the April 1, 2022 acquisition date, totaled $23 million during the second quarter of fiscal year 2022; (3) prior to the acquisition of the Mobile refinery, defendants had entered into an inventory purchase agreement with Shell Oil as part of the Mobile acquisition agreement. Vertex had anticipated purchasing approximately $100 million of crude oil and refined fuel inventory. Immediately prior to the closing of the acquisition, Vertex learned that pursuant to the terms of the purchase agreement, it would be required to purchase substantially more inventory from Shell Oil, totaling $164 million. Due to the state of backwardation in the oil market, Vertex was forced to pay Shell Oil above-market prices for the additional crude oil inventory. The additional Shell Oil inventory purchase triggered $13.3 million in inventory losses at or around the time of the acquisition; (4) immediately following the acquisition of the Mobile refinery, Vertex experienced production issues that caused significant shortfalls in refined fuel volumes. The production issues resulted in $8 million of lost profits during the second quarter of fiscal year 2022; (5) following the acquisition of the Mobile refinery, defendants overstated the purported profit margins that could be achieved at the refinery. Defendants represented that the “3-2-1 crack spread” was the appropriate benchmark for the Mobile refinery; however it was later revealed that the “2-1-1 crack spread,” which resulted in lower profits per barrel of production, was the more accurate profit benchmark for the Mobile refinery; and (6) as a result of the above misrepresentations and concealed facts, the Mobile refinery did not “generate strong EBITDA” “[d]uring the first 30 days of operations,” and the Mobile refinery transition was not “seamless”; and (7) as a result, Defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.
Nutanix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTNX)
Class Period: September 21, 2021 – March 6, 2023
Lead Plaintiff Deadline: June 13, 2023
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company maintained deficient internal controls relating to its use of licensed software and expense management; (2) as a result of these deficiencies, the Company improperly used third-party evaluation software for business purposes over a multi-year period; (3) investigation and remediation of the foregoing— i.e., by paying vendors the full cost to use their software for business purposes—would cause the Company to incur significant expenses; and (4) as a result, Defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.
To be a member of these class actions, you need not take any action at this time; you may retain counsel of your choice or take no action and remain an absent member of the class action. If you wish to learn more about these class actions, or if you have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Howard G. Smith, Esquire, of Law Offices of Howard G. Smith, 3070 Bristol Pike, Suite 112, Bensalem, Pennsylvania 19020, by telephone at (215) 638-4847, toll-free at (888) 638-4847, or by email to howardsmith@howardsmithlaw.com, or visit our website at www.howardsmithlaw.com.
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Contacts
Law Offices of Howard G. Smith
Howard G. Smith, Esquire
215-638-4847
888-638-4847
howardsmith@howardsmithlaw.com
www.howardsmithlaw.com
