NEW YORK, Oct. 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm, reminds investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of investors that purchased Coty, Inc. (NYSE: COTY) common stock between October 3, 2016 and May 28, 2020 (the “Class Period”). Investors have until November 3, 2020 to apply to the Court to be appointed as lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Click here to participate in the action.
Coty is one of the world’s largest beauty companies. The Company operates three divisions: Coty Consumer Beauty (“Consumer Beauty”) which focuses on color cosmetics, retail hair coloring and styling products, body care and mass fragrances sold primarily in the mass retail channels; Coty Luxury (“Coty Luxury”) which focuses on prestige fragrances and skincare brands; and Coty Professional Beauty (“Coty Professional”) which focuses on servicing nail salon owners and professionals in both hair and nail.
On the first day of the Class Period, October 3, 2016, Coty issued a press release announcing the completion of its blockbuster merger with The Proctor & Gamble Company’s fine fragrance, color cosmetics, salon professional and hair color and certain styling businesses (“P&G Specialty Beauty Business”) for $12.5 billion to scale up its beauty business. In the press release, defendant Becht, Chairman of Coty’s Board of Directors, confirmed that “…we now have a much improved team, structure and culture to make the vision of this merger a reality.”
On July 1, 2019, Coty announced the write down of about $3 billion in value of brands acquired from P&G as part of a four-year restructuring plan, confirming that the P&G Specialty Beauty Business had been overvalued.
On this news, Coty’s stock price dropped $1.94, or over 14%, from an opening price of $13.53 per share on July 1, 2019 to a closing price of $11.59 per share.
On November 18, 2019, Coty announced another beauty brand acquisition – a 51% majority stake in Kylie Cosmetics for $600 million in order to “build and further develop Kylie’s existing beauty business,” which “realized an estimated $177M net revenues for the trailing twelve months (TTM).” Kylie Jenner was described “as the youngest-ever self-made billionaire on the cover of Forbes Self-Made Billionaire issue in August 2018.”
But then, on May 29, 2020, Forbes reported that Kylie Jenner “has been inflating the size and success of her business. For years.” – revealing that defendants had overvalued yet another acquisition. On this news, Coty’s stock price fell $0.56, or over 13%, from a close of $4.19 on May 28, 2020 to a close of $3.63 per share on May 29, 2020.
The complaint, filed on September 4, 2020, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose material adverse facts about Coty’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, defendants misrepresented and/or failed to disclose: (1) that despite being no stranger to beauty brand acquisitions, Coty did not have adequate processes and procedures in place to assess and properly value the P&G Specialty Beauty Business and Kylie Cosmetics acquisitions; (2) that as a result, Coty had overpaid for the P&G Specialty Beauty Business and Kylie Cosmetics; (3) that Coty did not have adequate infrastructure to smoothly integrate and support the beauty brands that it acquired from P&G, including an adequate supply chain; (4) that, as a result of its inadequate infrastructure, Coty was not successfully integrating the beauty brands it acquired from P&G and not delivering synergies from the acquisition; (5) and that, as a result of the foregoing, Coty’s financial statements and defendants’ statements about Coty’s business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and/or misleading at all relevant times.
If you purchased Coty common stock during the Class Period and suffered a loss, are a long-term stockholder, have information, would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Melissa Fortunato, Marion Passmore, or Brandon Walker by email at investigations@bespc.com , telephone at (212) 355-4648, or by filling out this contact form. There is no cost or obligation to you.
About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York and California. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com . Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
Contact Information: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. Brandon Walker, Esq. Melissa Fortunato, Esq. Marion Passmore, Esq. (212) 355-4648 investigations@bespc.com www.bespc.com
