Law Firm Announces Filing Of Class Action Suit Against Autobytel On Behalf of Investors
NEW YORK--Dec. 9, 2004--The law firm of Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman LLP announces that a class action lawsuit was filed today on behalf of all persons who purchased or otherwise acquired the securities of Autobytel, Inc. ("Autobytel" or the "Company") between July 24, 2003 and October 21, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to pursue remedies under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act"). A copy of the complaint filed in this action is available from the Court, or can be viewed on Milberg Weiss's website at: http://www.milbergweiss.comThe action is pending before in the United States District Court for the Central District of California against defendants Autobytel, Hosni Printer (CFO) and Jeffrey A. Schwartz (CEO, President). According to the complaint, defendants violated sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act, and Rule 10b-5, by issuing a series of material misrepresentations to the market during the Class Period.
The complaint alleges that Autobytel's Class Period earnings announcements and reports were materially false and misleading for the following reasons: (a) the Company did not reduce revenue by the estimated provision for customer credits, contrary to defendants' express representations; (b) As a result of the foregoing, Autobytel's reported class period revenue and earnings were materially overstated, thereby deceiving investors as to the Company's true operating results; and (c) As a result of the foregoing, the earnings and shareholders' equity reported in the Prospectus were materially inflated, violated Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and failed to give a fair representation of Autobytel's true results and financial condition. Defendants' fraud was revealed on October 21, 2004. On that day, after the close of ordinary trading, Autobytel issued a press release announcing that its audit committee is supervising an internal review of the Company's recognition credits as revenue. In response to this announcement, the price of Autobytel common stock plummeted, from $8.81 per share on October 21, 2004 to $6.88 per share on October 22, 2004, a one day drop of 22%, on unusually heavy trading volume (over 3.5 million shares).
If you purchased or otherwise acquired the securities of Autobytel between July 24, 2003 and October 21, 2004, inclusive and sustained damages, you may, no later than December 28, 2004, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances, one or more class members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. You may retain Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman LLP, or other counsel of your choice, to serve as your counsel in this action.
Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman LLP (http://www.milbergweiss.com) is a firm with over 100 lawyers with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Boca Raton, Delaware, Seattle and Washington D.C. and is active in major litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States. Milberg Weiss has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of defrauded investors, consumers, and others for nearly 40 years. Please contact the Milberg Weiss website for more information about the firm. If you wish to discuss this action with us, or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights and interests with regard to the case, please contact the following attorneys:
Steven G. Schulman Peter E. Seidman Andrei V. Rado One Pennsylvania Plaza, 49th fl. New York, NY, 10119-0165 Phone number: (800) 320-5081 Email: sfeerick@milbergweiss.com Website: http://www.milbergweiss.com