Illumina, Inc. (ILMN) Misled Investors Regarding Insider’s Personal Motives for Acquiring GRAIL
A shareholder filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) securities between May 1, 2023 and October 16, 2023. Illumina is a genetic and genomic analysis company with a portfolio of integrated sequencing and microarray systems, consumables, and analysis tools designed to accelerate and simplify genetic analysis.
According to the complaint, in 2015, Illumina formed GRAIL, Inc. as a corporate subsidiary to develop a blood-based cancer detection test. After several capital financing rounds, Illumina spun off GRAIL in February 2017 and retained a stake of approximately 20%. After GRAIL raised $1.9 billion through venture capital and strategic partners, Illumina announced plans to reacquire GRAIL in September 2020. The acquisition was completed on August 18, 2022, over the objection of the European Union’s European Commission.
On August 10, 2023, Illumina revealed that the SEC was investigating the Company’s statements regarding GRAIL, including “conduct and compensation of certain members of Illumina and GRAIL management.” On this news, the Company’s stock price fell $4.64, or 2.5%, to close at $180.48 per share on August 11, 2023.
The complaint alleges that on October 17, 2023, Carl Icahn filed a complaint against current and former directors of Illumina, alleging direct and derivative claims of breaches of fiduciary duty. The complaint was filed under seal, but according to Reuters, Icahn “told the 13D Monitor Active-Passive Investor Summit in New York on Tuesday that the lawsuit pertained to Illumina completing its acquisition of cancer diagnostic test maker Grail.” On this news, the Company’s stock price fell $7.42, or 5.6%, to close at $124.45 per share on October 18, 2023.
What Now: Similarly situated shareholders may be eligible to participate in the class action against Illumina, Inc. Shareholders who want to act as lead plaintiff for the class should contact Robbins LLP. Plaintiffs must file their lead plaintiff papers by January 9, 2024. 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. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member.
All representation is on a contingency fee basis. Shareholders pay no fees or expenses.
