Catalent, Inc. (CTLT) Artificially Inflated Revenues Through Fraudulent Accounting
A shareholder filed a class action on behalf of all persons or entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Catalent, Inc. (NYSE: CTLT) securities between August 30, 2021 and October 31, 2022, for violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Catalent provides development and manufacturing solutions for drugs, protein-based biologics, cell and gene therapies, vaccines, and consumer health products at its over fifty facilities around the globe.
According to the complaint, during the class period, defendants reported growing revenues and assured investors that customer demand remained strong. Unbeknownst to investors, defendants artificially inflated Catalent’s revenues through fraudulent accounting and channel stuffing schemes to mislead investors into believing that Catalent was generating sustainable revenue growth. Defendants’ fraud caused Catalent stock to trade at a record high of $142.64 per share on September 9, 2021, and an average closing price of approximately $108.00 per share during the class period. However, as the truth of Catalent’s wrongdoing was revealed, the stock price fell to $44.90 on November 2, 2022, a more than 68 percent decline.
During the class period, defendants failed to disclose that: (i) Catalent materially overstated its revenue and earnings by prematurely recognizing revenue in violation of U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”); (ii) Catalent had material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting related to revenue recognition; (iii) Catalent falsely represented demand for its products while it knowingly sold more product to its direct customers than could be sold to healthcare providers and end consumers; and (iv) Catalent disregarded regulatory rules at key production facilities in order to rapidly produce excess inventory that was used to pad the Company’s financial results through premature revenue recognition in violation of GAAP and/or stuffing its direct customers with this excess inventory.
What Now: Similarly situated shareholders may be eligible to participate in the class action against Catalent. Shareholders who want to act as lead plaintiff for the class must file their papers by April 25, 2023. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. You do not have to participate in the case to be eligible for a recovery.
All representation is on a contingency fee basis. Shareholders pay no fees or expenses.
