RADNOR, Pa., Feb. 13, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP reminds Maxar Technologies Inc. (NYSE: MAXR) (“Maxar”) investors that a securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against Maxar on behalf of purchasers of Maxar securities between March 29, 2018 and January 7, 2019 , inclusive (the “Class Period”).
Important Deadline Reminder: Investors who purchased Maxar securities during the Class Period may, no later than March 15, 2019 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation please visit www.ktmc.com/maxar-securities-class-action .
According to the complaint, Maxar is a leading global provider of advanced space technology solutions for commercial and government markets including satellites, Earth imagery, geospatial data and analytics. On October 5, 2017, Maxar (doing business under the name MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. at the time) purchased DigitalGlobe, Inc. (“DigitalGlobe”), an American commercial vendor of space imagery and geospatial content, for $2.4 billion dollars. As part of the purchase, Maxar acquired DigitalGlobe’s satellites, called the “WorldView Legion,” including the WorldView-4 satellite (“WorldView-4”). WorldView-4 is equipped with control moment gyros (“CMGs”), which are attitude control devices generally used in spacecraft attitude control systems.
The Class Period commences on March 29, 2018, when Maxar filed an annual report on a Form 40-F with the SEC, announcing Maxar’s financial and operating results for the year ended December 31, 2017. Appended to the annual report was Management’s discussion and analysis (“MD&A”), dated February 22, 2018. The MD&A stated that Maxar acquired “intangible assets, consisting of customer relationships, backlog, technology, software, and other intellectual property” in its 2017 acquisition of DigitalGlobe. More specifically, the MD&A stated that Maxar incurred $1.439 billion in intangible assets related to the acquisition of DigitalGlobe, and an additional $1.668 billion in goodwill.
According to the complaint, on August 7, 2018, Spruce Point Capital Management (“Spruce Point”) published a research report on Maxar. The report alleged, in part, that Maxar “has pulled one of the most aggressive accounting schemes Spruce Point has ever seen to inflate Non-IFRS earnings by 79%.” Specifically, the report asserted that Maxar used its acquisition of DigitalGlobe “to inflate [its] intangible assets” and had “amended its post-retirement benefit plan to book one-time gains” in a manner that “was not fully disclosed across its investor communications.” Following this news, the price of Maxar common stock fell $5.97 per share, or 13.44%, to close at $38.44 on August 7, 2018.
Then, on January 7, 2019, Maxar disclosed that WorldView-4 experienced a failure in its CMGs, preventing it from collecting imagery due to the loss of an axis of stability. It was further disclosed that the WorldView-4 satellite will likely not be recoverable and will no longer produce usable imagery. Following this news, Maxar’s stock price fell $5.69 per share, or 48.5%, over the subsequent two trading days, to close at $6.03 per share on January 8, 2019.
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Maxar improperly inflated the value of its intangible assets, among other accounting improprieties; (ii) Maxar’s highly-valued WorldView-4 was equipped with CMGs that were faulty and/or ill-suited for their designed and intended purpose; and (iii) as a result, Maxar’s public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.
If you wish to discuss this securities fraud class action lawsuit or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests with respect to this litigation, please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check (James Maro, Jr., Esq. or Adrienne Bell, Esq.) at (888) 299–7706 or (610) 667–7706, or via e-mail at info@ktmc.com .
Maxar investors may, no later than March 15, 2019 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member’s claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.
Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, please visit www.ktmc.com .
CONTACT:
Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP James Maro, Jr., Esq. Adrienne Bell, Esq. 280 King of Prussia Road Radnor, PA 19087 (888) 299-7706 (610) 667-7706 info@ktmc.com
