NEW YORK, July 13, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP has filed a class action lawsuit against Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Provectus" or the "Company") (NYSE:PVCT) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville Division, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Provectus securities between December 17, 2013 and May 22, 2014, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). This class action seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws pursuant to Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder.
If you are a shareholder who purchased Provectus securities during the Class Period, you have until July 28, 2014 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, x237. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased.
Provectus is a development-stage biopharmaceutical company that focuses on developing pharmaceuticals for oncology and dermatology indications. The most important drug in the Company's pipeline is an oncology drug, PV-10, which is intended for the treatment of several life threatening cancers, including metastatic melanoma, liver cancer, and breast cancer.
The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business, operational and compliance policies. Specifically, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) the Company utilized the services of paid stock promoters to inflate its share price; (ii) contrary to the Company's representations, preparations were not underway for a Phase 3 study for PV-10; and (iii) the Company improperly referred to PV-10 as obtaining a Breakthrough Therapy Designation ("BTD"), and otherwise implied that obtaining that status was inevitable.
On January 23, 2014, an article was published on TheStreet.com, accusing Provectus of artificially inflating the price of its stock by making false representations related to the commencement of Phase III clinical trials.
On this news, the Company's shares declined $3.35, or over 64%, to close at $21.87 on January 23, 2014.
Prior to May 20, 2014, the Company's website improperly described its PV-10 drug as a "breakthrough" drug for skin cancer, prior to the FDA's designation of the drug as such. On May 20, 2014, the Company updated its website and changed the description of PV-10 to "An Investigational Drug for Cancer" and included language clearly indicating that the drug was still awaiting BTD designation by the FDA.
On this news, Provectus securities declined $0.31 per share, or over 10%, to close at $2.70 per share on May 20, 2014.
On May 21, 2014, an article was published on SeekingAlpha.com alleging that the Company was tied to stock promoters that improperly marketed the Company's stock to unsophisticated retail investors, thus artificially inflating the price of the Company's shares. The article noted that trading in many of the other companies associated with these stock promoters was recently halted by the SEC. That same day, Provectus issued a press release refuting the allegations of the SeekingAlpha.com article. Provectus specifically noted that PV-10, its investigational metastatic melanoma therapy, had not failed the breakthrough therapy designation, but was awaiting a decision from the FDA as to the status of its request. Additionally, Provectus further denied any affiliation with stock promoters.
On this news, the Company's shares declined $0.46, or over 17%, to close at $2.24 on May 21, 2014.
The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and San Diego, 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
