| Company: | Monsanto Company |
| Ticker Symbol: | MON |
| Class Period: | Jan-7-09 to May-27-10 |
| Date Filed: | Jul-29-10 |
| Lead Plaintiff Deadline: | Sep-27-10 |
| Court: | Eastern District of Missouri |
| Allegations: | |
The complaint charges Monsanto and certain of its officers and executives with violations of the Exchange Act. Monsanto is a provider of agricultural products for farmers including seeds, biotechnology trait products, and herbicides, most notably Roundup(R).
The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, defendants failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's true financial condition, business and prospects. Specifically, the complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose: (i) that demand for the Company's herbicide products was substantially declining as competition from Chinese producers of generic glyphosate products was causing a collapse in the prices of glyphosate products; (ii) that the Company would be unable to maintain herbicide prices as defendants knew that they had to cut prices significantly to be able to compete with the avalanche of generic herbicide products that were entering the market; and (iii) that, as a result of the foregoing, defendants' positive statements about the Company, its earnings, prospects and financial condition were lacking in a reasonable basis and materially misleading.
On May 27, 2010, the Company announced that it was "dramatically" repositioning its Roundup(R) business, lowering its full-year 2010 guidance to $2.40 to $2.60 a share from $3.10 to $3.30 a share, and lowering its free cash flow guidance. The Company also announced that its guidance for Roundup(R) and other glyphosate-based products was now $50 to $200 million, down from $600 million on April 7, 2010. On this news, the Company's stock price fell from a price of $52.66 prior to the announcement to close at $50.27 on extremely heavy volume.
If you acquired the securities of the defendants during the Class Period you may, no later than the Lead Plaintiff Deadline shown above, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff through counsel of your choice. You may also choose to remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff must meet certain requirements.
