TMCnet News

Notice of Lead Plaintiff Deadline for Shareholders in the HEXO Corp. Securities Class Action Lawsuit
[December 06, 2019]

Notice of Lead Plaintiff Deadline for Shareholders in the HEXO Corp. Securities Class Action Lawsuit


Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP announces that a securities class action lawsuit has been filed in the Southern District of New York on behalf of purchasers of HEXO Corp. (NYSE:HEXO) common stock between January 25, 2019 and November 15, 2019 (the "Class Period"). The case is captioned Perez v. HEXO Corp., No. 19-cv-10965, and is assigned to Judge Naomi R. Buchwald. The HEXO securities class action lawsuit charges HEXO and certain of its current and former officers with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who purchased HEXO common stock during the Class Period to seek appointment as lead plaintiff in the HEXO securities class action lawsuit. A lead plaintiff acts on behalf of all other class members in directing the HEXO securities class action lawsuit. The lead plaintiff can select a law firm of its choice to litigate the HEXO securities class action lawsuit. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery of the HEXO securities class action lawsuit is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff of the HEXO securities class action lawsuit or have questions concerning your rights regarding the HEXO securities class action lawsuit, please visit our website by clicking here or contact Brian Cochran at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at [email protected]. Lead plaintiff motions for the HEXO securities class action lawsuit must be filed with the court no later than January 27, 2020.

HEXO is a licensed producer and distributor of branded cannabis products. The HEXO securities class action lawsuit alleges that during the Class Period, defendants failed to disclose that: (1) HEXO's reported inventory was misstated, as it was failing to write down or write off obsolete product that no longer had value; (2) HEXO was engaging in channel-stuffing to inflate its revenue figures and meet or exceed revenue guidance provide to investors; (3) HEXO was cultivating cannabis at its facility in Niagara, Ontario that was not appropriately licensed by Health Canada; and (4) that, based on the foregoing, defendants' positive statements about HEXO's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. As a result of this information being withheld from the market, HEXO common stock traded at artificially inflated prices of more than $8.00 per share during the Class Period.



On October 4, 2019, HEXO announced the abrupt and immediate resignation of its then Chief Financial Officer, Michael Monahan. On this news, HEXO's stock price fell more than 6%. Then, on October 10, 2019, defendants announced that they now expected HEXO's net revenue for the fourth quarter of 2019 to be approximately CAD$14.5 million to $16.5 million, well below previous guidance that called for CAD$24.8 million. Further, defendants announced that HEXO had elected to withdraw its fiscal year 2020 financial outlook, which had included anticipated net-revenue of approximately CAD$400 million for the fiscal year. HEXO's Chief Executive Officer, defendant Sébastien St. Louis, attributed the lower expected revenue to "lower than expected product sell through," "[s]lower than expected store rollouts, a delay in government approval for cannabis derivative products and early signs of pricing pressure[,] . . . [a] delay in retail store openings [and] regulatory uncertainty." On this news, HEXO's stock price declined more than 22%.

On October 24, 2019, HEXO announced 200 layoffs, which resulted in the subsequent shutting down of several facilities HEXO operated near Niagara Falls, Ontario. HEXO further postponed its quarterly earnings report, having just inked a CAD$70 million deal with an investor group that included defendant St. Louis and three board members. That same day, CIBC World Markets Corp. published a scathing analyst report regarding HEXO and downgraded HEXO to Underperformer, with a new lowered $3 price target. On this news, HEXO's stock price fell more than 6%. Then, on October 29, 2019, HEXO reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and 2019 fiscal year, announcing that HEXO had taken an impairment on CAD$16.9 million of inventory purchased in the prior period due to declining market prices. HEXO further confirmed that "[c]ultivation has been suspended at the Niagara facility." On this news, HEXO's stock price fell an additional 3%.


Finally, on November 15, 2019, HEXO issued a press release entitled "HEXO Corp provides additional transparency on licensing," in which it admitted that it grew marijuana in an unlicensed facility in Niagara, Ontario. On this news, HEXO's stock price dropped more than 5%.

Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP is one of the world's leading law firms representing investors in securities litigation. With 200 lawyers in 9 offices, Robbins Geller has obtained many of the largest securities class action recoveries in history. For six consecutive years, ISS Securities Class Action Services has ranked the Firm in its annual SCAS Top 50 Report as one of the top law firms in the world in both amount recovered for shareholders and total number of class action settlements. Robbins Geller attorneys have helped shape the securities laws and have recovered tens of billions of dollars on behalf of aggrieved victims. Beyond securing financial recoveries for defrauded investors, Robbins Geller also specializes in implementing corporate governance reforms, helping to improve the financial markets for investors worldwide. Robbins Geller attorneys are consistently recognized by courts, professional organizations, and the media as leading lawyers in the industry. Please visit http://www.rgrdlaw.com for more information.

https://www.linkedin.com/company/rgrdlaw
https://twitter.com/rgrdlaw
https://www.facebook.com/rgrdlaw


[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]