Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP Files Class Action Suit Against Certain Officers and Directors of PFF Bancorp, Inc.
2009-01-11 08:29:02 -
Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP ("Coughlin Stoia") (www.csgrr.com/cases/pffbancorp/) today announced that a class action has been commenced in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on behalf of purchasers of PFF Bancorp, Inc. ("PFF") (OTC:PFFBQ) common stock during the period between October 23, 2006 and November 21, 2008 (the "Class Period").
If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from today. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel, Darren Robbins of Coughlin Stoia at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at djr@csgrr.com. If you are a member of this class, you can view a copy of the complaint as filed or join this class action online at www.csgrr.com/cases/pffbancorp/. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.
The complaint charges certain of PFF's officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. PFF operates as a holding company for PFF Bank & Trust (the "Bank"), which provides community banking services to individuals and companies in Southern California.
The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, defendants issued materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business and financial results and engaged in improper behavior, which harmed PFF's customers and investors in its common stock, including lending to borrowers with little ability to repay the amount loaned and failing to inform investors of the impact of changes in the real estate market in San Bernardino and Riverside counties (the "Inland Empire"). As a result of defendants' false statements, PFF's stock traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period, reaching a high of $35.45 per share in December 2006.
On November 21, 2008, after the market closed, the Bank was closed by regulators and taken over by U.S. Bancorp. Following this announcement, PFF's stock declined to $0.01 per share - a total loss for investors.
According to the complaint, the true facts, which were known by the defendants but concealed from the investing public during the Class Period, were as follows: (a) PFF's assets contained hundreds of millions of dollars worth of impaired and risky securities, many of which were backed by real estate that was rapidly dropping in value; (b) prior to and during the Class Period, PFF had been extremely aggressive in generating loans, including being heavily involved in offering Home Equity Lines of Credit ("HELOCs"), which would be enormously problematic if the value of residential real estate did not continue to increase; (c) defendants failed to properly account for PFF's real estate loans, failing to reflect impairment in the loans; (d) PFF's business prospects were much worse than represented due to problems in the Inland Empire market, which was a key focus of PFF's business; and (e) PFF had not adequately reserved for loan losses on HELOCs and on other real estate-related assets.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of PFF common stock during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Coughlin Stoia, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.
Coughlin Stoia, a 190-lawyer firm with offices in San Diego, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Boca Raton, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and Atlanta, is active in major litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States and has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of defrauded investors, consumers, and companies, as well as victims of human rights violations. The Coughlin Stoia Web site (www.csgrr.com) has more information about the firm.
Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP
Darren Robbins, 800-449-4900 or 619-231-1058
djr@csgrr.com
