On December 17, 2021, Robinhood Markets was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on behalf of investors who purchased shares pursuant or traceable to the Company’s Registration Statement and Prospectus (together, the “Offering Documents”) issued in connection with the Company’s July 2021 Initial Public Offering (the "IPO" or the "Offering").
Recent Security Class Actions
On December 14, 2021, Sleep Number Corporation was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s shares between February 18, 2021 and July 20, 2021.
On December 10, 2021, Revance Therapeutics was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s securities between November 25, 2019 and October 11, 2021.
On November 18, 2021, Peloton was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s shares between December 9, 2020 and November 4, 2021.
On October 27, 2021, Facebook (now Meta Platforms, Inc.) was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the Eastern District of New York on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s securities between November 3, 2016 and October 4, 2021.
According to the Complaint, TMC the metals company Inc. f/k/a Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. is a Canadian deep-sea minerals exploration company focused on the collection, processing, and refining of polymetallic nodules found on the seafloor of the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean (the "CCZ"). The Company's purported mission is to supply metals for electric vehicle batteries with the least possible negative environmental and social impact.
On March 4, 2021, DeepGreen Inc. ("DeepGreen") announced that it had entered into a business combination agreement with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corporation ("SOAC"), special purpose acquisition company ("SPAC") with a dedicated Environmental, Social, and Governance ("ESG") focus. Upon closing of the merger, the combined company was renamed TMC the metals company Inc.
The Complaint alleges that Defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company had significantly overpaid to acquire Tonga Offshore Mining Limited ("TOML") to undisclosed insiders; (2) the Company had artificially inflated its Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. ("NORI") exploration expenditures to give investors a false scale of its operations; (3) the Company's purported 100% interest in NORI was questionable given prior disclosures to the International Seabed Authority ("ISA" or the "Authority") that NORI was wholly owned by two Nauruan foundations and that all future income from NORI would be used in Nauru; (4) Defendants had significantly downplayed the environmental risks of deep-sea mining polymetallic nodules and failed to adequately warn investors of the regulatory risks faced by the Company's environmentally risky exploitation plans; (5) the Company's private investment in public equity ("PIPE") financing was not fully committed and, therefore, the Company would not have the cash necessary for large sale commercial production; (6) as a result of the foregoing, the Company's valuation was significantly less than Defendants disclosed to investors; and (7) as a result, Defendants' public statements were materially false and/or misleading at all relevant times.
On August 12, 2021, post-market, the Company disclosed that the Company’s largest third-party payer, which accounted for 80% of its accounts receivables and was “basically administrating on behalf of the federal government,” had not paid on submitted claims since March 1, 2021. On this news, the Company’s share price fell $8.00, or over 24%, to close at $24.70 per share on August 13, 2021, on unusually heavy trading volume.
Then, on September 22, 2021, post-market, the Company disclosed that “it is the target of a criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice related to insurance reimbursement claims the Company has submitted on behalf of customers covered by federal employee health plans,” and as a result was withdrawing its financial guidance for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31.
On October 6, 2021, Bristol-Myers Squibb Motors was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the Southern District of New York on behalf of investors who received Contingent Value Rights (“CVRs”) (NYSE: BMY.RT) in exchange for their shares of Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) pursuant to BMS’ acquisition of Celgene on November 20, 2019.
On October 05, 2021, Nano-X Imaging was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the Eastern District of New York on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s securities between June 17, 2021 and August 18, 2021.
On September 30, 2021, Hyzon Motors was sued for violations of the federal securities laws in the Western District of New York on behalf of investors who purchased the Company’s securities between February 9, 2021 and September 27, 2021. On July 16, 2021, the merger between the Company and Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corporation was completed with Decarbonization changing its name to Hyzon Motors Inc., and on July 19, 2021, Hyzon common stock began trading under the ticker symbol “HYZN” and Hyzon warrants began trading under the ticker symbol “HYZNW.” Before the merger, Hyzon Motors securities traded under the ticker symbols “DCRBU” for Units, “DCRB” for common stock, and “DCRBW” for warrants.
