NEW YORK, May 5, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Milberg LLP reminds shareholders that the lead plaintiff motion deadline in securities lawsuits against Puda Coal, Inc. ("Puda" or the "Company") (NYSE Amex:PUDA) is June 13, 2011. On April 21, 2011, the firm filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of investors who purchased the securities of Puda during the period November 13, 2009, to April 11, 2011, inclusive (the "Class Period").
The case, Burquist v. Puda Coal Inc., No. CV11-03412, is pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California and alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by Puda and certain of the Company's officers.
Puda is a supplier of premium high grade cleaned coking coal used to produce coke for steel manufacturing in the People's Republic of China (the "PRC" or "China"). The Company is incorporated in Delaware and headquartered in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China.
The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements to investors by failing to disclose that the Company's Chairman, Ming Zhao, had transferred ownership of Puda's operating entity, Shanxi Puda Coal Group Co., Ltd. ("Shanxi Coal"), to himself, thereby rendering Puda an empty shell company.
On April 8, 2011, Alfred Little, an investor who researches and blogs about Chinese companies, exposed the transfer of Shanxi Coal to Ming Zhao. In reaction to this news, shares of Puda's stock fell $3.10 per share, or over 34 percent, to close at $6.00 per share, on extremely heavy trading volume. On the next trading day, April 11, 2011, the Company issued a press release stating that, "[a]lthough the investigation is in its preliminary stages, evidence supports the allegation that there were transfers by Mr. Zhao in subsidiary ownership that were inconsistent with disclosure made by the Company in its public securities filings. Mr. Zhao has agreed to a voluntarily leave of absence as Chairman of the Board of the Company until the investigation is complete." In response to this announcement, the NYSE halted trading in the Company's stock.
If you purchased securities of Puda from November 13, 2009, to April 11, 2011, you may move the court no later than June 13, 2011, and request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. To be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must decide that you have the largest financial interest of any competing movant and that your claims are typical of the claims of other class members, and that you will adequately represent the class. Your share in any recovery will not be enhanced or diminished by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. If there is a recovery in this action and you are part of the class, you can recover as an absent class member without moving for lead plaintiff or otherwise taking an active role in the litigation. You may retain Milberg LLP, or other attorneys, to serve as your counsel in this action, but do not need to retain counsel to participate in any recovery as an absent class member.
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If you wish to discuss this matter with us, please contact the following attorneys:
Andrei Rado, Esq.
Milberg LLP
One Pennsylvania Plaza, 49th Fl.
New York, NY 10119-0165
Phone number: (800) 320-5081
Email: arado@milberg.com
Jeff Westerman, Esq.
Milberg LLP
300 South Grand Avenue, Suite 3900
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Phone number: (800) 320-5081
Email: contactus@milberg.com
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