Robbins LLP: Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (ESPR) Misled Shareholders According to a Recently Filed Class Action
Shareholder rights law firm Robbins LLP announces that a class action complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The complaint alleges that officers and directors of Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQGM: ESPR) violated the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 between August 18, 2015 and September 28, 2015, by making materially false and misleading statements about Esperion’s business prospects. Esperion, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the research, development, and commercialization of oral and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol-lowering therapies for the treatment of patients with hypercholesterolemia and other cardiometabolic risk markers. Its lead product candidate is ETC-1002, a once-daily small molecule designed to lower LDL-cholesterol levels.
Esperion Accused of Lying to Investors About Its Meeting with the FDA
According to the complaint, by early August 2015, Esperion completed ETC-1002’s Phase 2b clinical trials and was meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to discuss moving forward with the Phase 3 segment of the approval process. Up to that point, Esperion never mentioned to investors that it would need to conduct a lengthy and expensive cardiovascular outcomes trial (“CVOT”) prior to ETC-1002 being approved. On August 17, 2015, Esperion relayed to investors material events from its meeting with the FDA, and stated that the FDA informed the company that it would not have to complete a CVOT to gain approval of ETC-1002. Esperion further stated that the company was pleased with the outcome of the meeting and that it had a “clear regulatory path forward for development and approval of ETC-1002.”
On September 28, 2015, Esperion reversed course about the FDA meeting, stating that the FDA had actually encouraged the company to initiate a CVOT and it may be necessary to have a completed CVOT prior to approval. Thus, the complaint alleges, Esperion officials’ prior statements about the meeting were false because they were aware that the FDA had actually encouraged the company to initiate a CVOT prior to their contradictory announcement to investors. On this news, Esperion stock fell by $16.76 per share, or nearly 50%, to close at $18.33 per share on September 29, 2015.
Esperion Shareholders Have Legal Options
Concerned shareholders who would like more information about their rights and potential remedies can contact attorney Darnell R. Donahue at (800) 350-6003, or you can complete the form below and we will contact you directly.