NEW YORK, Jan. 15, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Vital Therapies, Inc. (“Vital Therapies” or the “Company”)(NASDAQ: VTL ), and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, Southern District of California, and docketed under 15-cv-02951, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased Vital Therapies securities between April 17, 2014 and August 21, 2015 inclusive (the “Class Period”). This class action seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”).
If you are a shareholder who purchased Vital Therapies securities during the Class Period, you have until February 1, 2016 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com . To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free, ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased.
Vital Therapies is a biotherapeutic company focused on developing a cell-based system for the treatment of liver failure. The Company has developed a product candidate, the ELAD System, which is an extracorporeal human allogeneic cellular liver treatment designed with the proposed intent to allow the patient’s own liver to regenerate to a healthy state, or to stabilize the patient until liver transplant.
The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, defendants misrepresented material facts and/or misled investors about the interconnection between Vital Therapies’ three clinical trials, the independent significance of each clinical trial, and the potential effects of the failure of one of the Company’s clinical trials on the others. When the truth finally emerged, the trading price of the Company’s stock plummeted, resulting in significant losses to Plaintiff and the members of the proposed class.
On August 21, 2015, after the market closed, the Company issued a press release announcing that the VTI-208 trial “failed to meet the primary endpoint of overall survival through at least 91 days[.]” The press release also announced that “[t]he Company will stop the VTI-210 and VTI-212 clinical trials, and also plans to meet with the FDA as soon as possible to discuss restructuring its clinical development program, including a potential new trial to confirm the information suggested by the subset analyses.”
On the same day, the Company held a conference call to discuss the VTI-208 results and the future of Vital Therapies. During the call, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer Terence E. Winters explained that the Company’s other trials would be stopped to conserve cash for a new trial. When asked when the VTI-210 and VTI-212 trials would be restarted, Winters refused to give a time frame.
As a result of this news, the trading price of Vital Therapies common stock plunged 73.4% from its August 21, 2015 closing price of $17.68 per share to close at $3.65 per share on August 24, 2015, the next trading day.
The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 70 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com
CONTACT: Robert S. Willoughby Pomerantz LLP rswilloughby@pomlaw.com
