Dec 6, 2018 | Securities Class Action Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making MiMedx shareholders aware that on December 5, 2018, MiMedx Group, Inc. (OTC PINK: MDXG) “. . . announced its plans to implement a broad-based organizational realignment, cost reduction and efficiency program to better ensure the Company’s cost structure is appropriate given its revenue expectations. . . .”
MiMedx also announced that “. . . the realignment will include a reduction of the MiMedx workforce by approximately 240 full-time employees, or 24% of its total workforce, of which about half are salesforce personnel. The cost reductions also include various non-employee expenses. As a result of this realignment program, management expects [MiMedx] to realize material, annualized cost savings beginning in the first quarter of 2019.”
MiMedx reiterated that “[a]s previously announced, [MiMedx] is restating its financial statements. Due to the depth, breadth and complexity of issues identified, management has expanded the scope of work in connection with the preparation of the Company’s financial statements and is unable to estimate the expected completion date at this time.”
MiMedx also stated that
[d]ue to the changes in business practices discussed above and other factors, including the inability to provide the full context of current or past performance, [MiMedx] is not currently in a position to provide any financial performance-related information. Moreover, at this time, the Company cannot estimate its exposure, if any, to potential contingent liabilities related to pending and threatened shareholder lawsuits, pending governmental investigations or other legal proceedings.
As previously disclosed, the Compensation Committee and the Board determined that the separations of the Company’s former CEO, COO, CFO and Corporate Controller should be treated as “for cause” and that these former executive officers had engaged in, among other things, conduct detrimental to the business or reputation of the Company. The departures of these former executives have enabled [MiMedx] to progress in the preparation of its financial statements.
The Audit Committee’s independent investigation is still ongoing, and there may be other actions taken based, at least in part, on information from the investigation. [MiMedx] continues to incur significant legal and accounting-related expenses related to, among other things, the Audit Committee’s independent investigation and other legal matters, the Company’s work to prepare its restated financial statements and the implementation of improved business controls.
Separately, the Board of Directors’ search process for a permanent CEO is active and ongoing, and the Board has been meeting with candidates. However, the ongoing investigation, resulting extensive accounting analysis and pending financial restatement process make it challenging to attract qualified candidates. In addition, the financial restatement process has presented a practical issue with respect to candidates having sufficient information to evaluate the Company’s financial situation and overall business. (Emphasis added).
MiMedx Group Investors and Shareholders
If you purchased, or otherwise acquired, MDXG shares and have questions or concerns, please contact John A. Kehoe, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 801, [email protected], complete the form above on the right or e-mail [email protected].
Dec 5, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Breach of Marriott’s Starwood Guest Reservation Database Exposed Personal Information of Up to 500 Million People
On December 4, 2018, the FTC advised that Marriott International said that a breach of its Starwood guest reservation database exposed the personal information of up to 500 million people.
According to Marriott, the hackers accessed people’s names, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, passport numbers, dates of birth, gender, Starwood loyalty program account information, and reservation information. For some, they also stole payment card numbers and expiration dates. Marriott says the payment card numbers were encrypted, but it does not yet know if the hackers also stole the information needed to decrypt them.
Marriott Data Breach Began in 2014 – Individuals Who Made a Reservation at a Starwood Property On or Before September 18, 2018 Could Be Affected
The hotel chain, according to the FTC, says the breach began in 2014 and anyone who made a reservation at a Starwood property on or before September 10, 2018 could be affected. Starwood brands include W Hotels, St. Regis, Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, Westin Hotels & Resorts, Le Méridien Hotels & Resorts, and other hotel and timeshare properties.
Marriott Sets Up Information Website and Call Center to Answer Questions of Affected Customers
Marriott set up an informational website, https://answers.kroll.com, and a call center, (877) 273-9481, to answer questions. It says affected customers also can sign up for a year of free services that will monitor websites that criminals use to share people’s personal information. Marriott says the service will alert customers if their information shows up on the websites, and will also include fraud loss reimbursement and other services.
FTC Recommends Individuals Take Advantage of Free Monitoring Service and Take Additional Steps
The FTC advises that if your information was exposed, take advantage of the free monitoring service, and consider taking these additional steps:
- Check your credit reports for free from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion by visiting annualcreditreport.com. Accounts or activity that you don’t recognize could signal identity theft. Visit IdentityTheft.gov to find out what to do.
- Carefully Review your payment card statements. Look for credit or debit card charges you don’t recognize. If you find fraudulent charges, contact your credit card company or bank right away, report the fraud, and request a new payment card number.
- Place a fraud alert on your credit files. A fraud alert warns creditors that you may be an identity theft victim and that they should verify that anyone seeking credit in your name really is you. A fraud alert is free and lasts a year.
- Consider placing a free credit freeze on your credit reports. A credit freeze makes it harder for someone to open a new account in your name, but won’t stop a thief from making charges to your existing accounts.
Marriott, according to the FTC, says it will send some customers e-mail messages with a link to its informational website. Often, phishing scammers try to take advantage of situations like this. Phishing scammers pose as legitimate companies and send e-mails with links to fake websites to try to trick people into sharing their personal information. Marriott says its e-mail will neither have any attachments nor request any information. Consumer should be aware that the safest course of action, according to the FTC, is to access the informational website by typing in the address https://answers.kroll.com.
To learn more about protecting yourself after a data breach, visit IdentityTheft.gov/databreach. For more information about steps to take after a data breach, please see:
Source: FTC.gov
Nov 30, 2018 | Securities Class Action Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is investigating potential claims on behalf of investors of Tenaris S.A. (NYSE: TS) to determine whether Tenaris and certain of its officers and/or directors engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.
On November 27, 2018, it was reported that an Argentine judge had indicted Paolo Rocca (“Rocca”), Tenaris’s chairman and majority shareholder, in connection with a wide-ranging bribery scandal involving the government of Argentina.
On November 27, 2018, Bloomberg reported:
The judge charged Rocca after the Argentine billionaire testified that one of his company’s executives paid an undisclosed amount of cash to government officials in eight monthly installments in 2008. The officials were allegedly working for then-President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s administration to speed up a compensation payment from Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez for the nationalization of Sidor, a unit that had been seized by Venezuela. Rocca’s group was compensated with $1.95 billion for the unit in 2012.
The move comes as [judge Claudio] Bonadio probes hundreds of alleged bribes paid by construction companies, energy suppliers and electricity generators to members of the former government. The case, known as the “notebook scandal” after a series of notebooks belonging to a driver for the former deputy secretary for planning, who kept records of names, amounts, addresses and dates of alleged bribes paid between 2005 and 2015. Somebody named “Hector” appears in the notebooks making payments at a Rocca group building. (Emphasis added.)
Following this news, Tenaris’s American depositary receipt price fell $2.64, or 9.78%, to close at $24.36 on November 27, 2018.
Tenaris Investors and Shareholders
If you purchased or otherwise acquired Tenaris ADRs and have questions or concerns about the securities investigation or your potential legal rights, please contact John A. Kehoe, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 801, [email protected], complete the form above on the right or e-mail [email protected].
Nov 30, 2018 | Shareholder & Investor Protection
SEC Warns That Scammers May Try to Take Advantage of California Wildfires
On November 29, 2018, the SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy issued an investor alert warning investors, including individuals who may receive lump sum payouts from insurance companies and others as a result of damage from the California wildfires, about fraudulent investment scams.
The SEC advised that fraudsters often try to use natural disasters, like the recent California wildfires, as a way to lure victims into investment scams. These scams include:
- So-called “investments” in companies purportedly involved in cleanup, repair and recovery efforts;
- False claims of affiliation with state and federal governments or large, well-known companies; and
- Sales of stock in small publicly-traded companies as part of “pump-and-dump” scams (promising high returns for investments in companies that supposedly will reap huge profits from recovery and cleanup efforts).
Some scams, according to the SEC, are circulated through unsolicited e-mail or social media, as well as by telephone. Fraudsters also may target individuals receiving money from insurance companies or other sources. The SEC warns that individuals, including those receiving lump sum insurance payouts, should be extremely wary of potential investment scams.
Investors: Use Caution, Ask Questions
The SEC advises investors that one of the best ways to avoid investment fraud is to ask questions. Investors should be suspect, if approached by somebody touting an investment opportunity. It is important for an investor to ask that individual whether he or she is licensed and whether the investment is registered with the SEC or with a state. Investors should confirm their answers with an objective source, such as the SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy or a state securities regulator. Importantly, promises of high or guaranteed profits with little or no risk are classic signs of fraud.
Investors should carefully review their entire financial situation, before making any investment decision, especially if a recipient of a lump-sum payment. The SEC reminds investors that a payment may have to help finance rebuilding and recovery as well as last one and his/her family for a long time.
The SEC’s publication, Ask Questions, discusses many of the other questions to ask anyone who wants you to make an investment.
SEC Investor Resources
Source: SEC.gov
Nov 28, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
On November 28, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is mailing 1,251 checks totaling more than $647,000 to non-profit organizations, churches, schools, small businesses, and volunteers that were tricked into buying office supply products at higher prices or in larger quantities than they had agreed upon.
According to the FTC, in December 2015, the FTC charged the operators of Liberty Supply Company, an office supply scheme, with bilking millions of dollars from consumers by misrepresenting prices and quantities, and then demanding payment or forcing consumers to pay hefty shipping and restocking fees to return the unwanted or overpriced products.
In March 2017, the operators settled with the FTC and a federal court granted an order permanently banning the defendants from telemarketing and from misrepresenting any product or service in the future.
The average refund amount is $517.76. The FTC advises that recipients should deposit or cash checks by January 27, 2019, as indicated on the check. The FTC never requires people to pay money or provide account information to cash a refund check. To learn more about the case, contact the FTC’s refund administrator at 1-877-435-4069.
Source: FTC.gov
