throbber
Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 1 of 15
`
`
`
`
`
`UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
`SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
`
`
` JOSEPH OCHOA,
`
`
`
`
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`v.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`ANTARES PHARMA, INC., LEONARD S.
`JACOB, THOMAS J. GARRITY, PETER S.
`GREENLEAF, ANTON GUETH, ROBERT P.
`ROCHE, JR., KAREN SMITH, CARMEN
`VOLKART, and ROBERT F. APPLE,
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Civil Action No.
`
`COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATIONS
`OF THE FEDERAL SECURITIES
`LAWS
`
`
`JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
`
`
`
`Defendants.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Plaintiff Joseph Ochoa (“Plaintiff”) by and through his undersigned attorneys, brings this
`
`action on behalf of himself, and alleges the following based upon personal knowledge as to those
`
`allegations concerning Plaintiff and, as to all other matters, upon the investigation of counsel,
`
`which includes, without limitation: (a) review and analysis of public filings made by Antares
`
`Pharma, Inc. (“Antares” or the “Company”) and other related parties and non-parties with the
`
`United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”); (b) review and analysis of press
`
`releases and other publications disseminated by certain of the Defendants (defined below) and
`
`other related non-parties; (c) review of news articles, shareholder communications, and postings
`
`on Antares’s website concerning the Company’s public statements; and (d) review of other
`
`publicly available information concerning Antares and the Defendants.
`
`NATURE OF THE ACTION
`
`1.
`
`Plaintiff brings this action on behalf of himself against the Company and
`
`members of the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board” or the “Individual Defendants”) for
`
`violations of Sections 14(d)(4), 14(e) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
`
`
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 2 of 15
`
`
`
`“Exchange Act”), 15 U.S.C. §§ 78n(d)(4), 78n(e), 78t(a), and SEC Rule 14d-9, 17 C.F.R.
`
`§240.14d-9(d) (“Rule 14d-9”), in connection with the proposed acquisition of the Company by
`
`affiliates of Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. (“Halozyme”) (the “Proposed Transaction”).
`
`2.
`
`On April 12, 2022, the Company entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger
`
`(the “Merger Agreement”) with Atlas Merger Sub, Inc. (“Purchaser”), a wholly owned
`
`subsidiary of Halozyme, which is also a party to the Merger Agreement. Pursuant to the terms of
`
`the Merger Agreement, each Antares common share issued and outstanding will be converted
`
`into the right to receive $5.60 per share in cash (the “Merger Consideration”). In connection with
`
`the Proposed Transaction, Purchaser commenced a tender offer to acquire all of Antares’s
`
`outstanding common stock and will expire on May 17, 2022.
`
`3.
`
`On April 26, 2022, the Company filed an incomplete and materially misleading
`
`Recommendation Statement with the SEC (the “Recommendation Statement”) in connection
`
`with the Proposed Transaction. The Recommendation Statement omits material information
`
`concerning the Proposed Transaction.
`
`4.
`
`Accordingly, the failure to adequately disclose such material information
`
`constitutes a violation of Sections 14(d), 14(e) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act as Antares’
`
`stockholders need such information in order to make a fully informed decision whether to tender
`
`their shares in support of the Proposed Transaction or seek appraisal.
`
`5.
`
`As set forth more fully herein, Plaintiff seeks to enjoin Defendants from
`
`proceeding with the Proposed Transaction.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`2
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 3 of 15
`
`
`
`JURISDICTION AND VENUE
`
`6.
`
`This Court has subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Section 27 of the Exchange
`
`Act (15 U.S.C. § 78aa) and 28 U.S.C. § 1331 as Plaintiff alleges violations of Sections 14(d)(4),
`
`14(e) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act
`
`7.
`
`This Court has personal jurisdiction over all of the Defendants because each is
`
`either a corporation that conducts business in, solicits shareholders in, and/or maintains
`
`operations within, this District, or is an individual who is either present in this District for
`
`jurisdictional purposes or has sufficient minimum contacts with this District so as to make the
`
`exercise of jurisdiction by this Court permissible under traditional notions of fair play and
`
`substantial justice.
`
`8.
`
`Venue is proper under 28 U.S.C. § 1391 because a substantial portion of the
`
`transactions and wrongs complained of herein occurred in this District.
`
`THE PARTIES
`
`9.
`
`Plaintiff has been the owner of the common stock of Antares since prior to the
`
`transaction herein complained of and continuously to date.
`
`10.
`
`Defendant Antares is a Delaware corporation with its principal executive offices
`
`located at 100 Princeton South, Suite 300, Ewing, New Jersey, 08628. The Company’s stock
`
`trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker “ATRS”
`
`11.
`
`Defendant Leonard S. Jacob (“Jacob”) is and has been the Chairman of the Board
`
`of Antares at all times during the relevant period.
`
`12.
`
`Defendant Thomas J. Garrity (“Garrity”) is and has been an Antares director at all
`
`times during the relevant period.
`
`
`
`3
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 4 of 15
`
`
`
`13.
`
`Defendant Peter S. Greenleaf (“Greenleaf”) is and has been an Antares director at
`
`all times the relevant time period.
`
`14.
`
`Defendant Anton Gueth (“Gueth”) is and has been an Antares director at all times
`
`the relevant time period.
`
`15.
`
`Defendant Robert P. Roche, Jr. (“Roche”) is and has been an Antares director at
`
`all times the relevant time period.
`
`16.
`
`Defendant Karen Smith (“Smith”) is and has been an Antares director at all times
`
`the relevant time period.
`
`17.
`
`Defendant Carmen Volkart (“Volkart”) is and has been an Antares director at all
`
`times the relevant time period.
`
`18.
`
`Defendant Robert F. Apple (“Apple”) is and has been the Chief Executive Officer
`
`(“CEO”) and a director of Antares at all times the relevant time period.
`
`19.
`
`Defendants Jacob, Garrity, Greenleaf, Gueth, Roche, Smith, Volkart, and Apple
`
`are collectively referred to herein as the “Individual Defendants.”
`
`20.
`
`Defendant Antares, along with the Individual Defendants, are collectively referred
`
`to herein as “Defendants.”
`
`SUBSTANTIVE ALLEGATIONS
`
`Background of the Company
`
`21.
`
`Antares a specialty pharmaceutical company, focuses primarily on
`
`the
`
`development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products and technologies that address
`
`patient needs in targeted therapeutic areas. It develops, manufactures, and commercializes novel
`
`therapeutic products using its drug delivery systems. The Company’s injection products include
`
`XYOSTED for subcutaneous administration of testosterone replacement therapy in adult males;
`
`
`
`4
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 5 of 15
`
`
`
`OTREXUP a subcutaneous methotrexate injection indicated for adults with severe active
`
`rheumatoid arthritis, children with active polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis, and adults
`
`with severe recalcitrant psoriasis; and NOCDURNA sublingual tablets indicated for the
`
`treatment of nocturia due to nocturnal polyuria in adults who awaken at least two times per night
`
`to urinate. Its injection products also comprise generic Epinephrine Injection USP products
`
`indicated for emergency treatment of severe allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis in adults
`
`and certain pediatric patients; Sumatriptan Injection USP indicated for the acute treatment of
`
`migraine headaches and cluster headache in adults; and Makena subcutaneous auto-injector
`
`drug-device combination product indicated to reduce the risk of preterm birth in women, as well
`
`as Teriparatide injection used for the treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women and
`
`men at increased risk of fracture, and glucocorticoid induced osteoporosis in men and women. In
`
`addition, the Company develops disposable pen injectors for diabetes and osteoporosis;
`
`QuickShot auto-injectors; TLANDO to treat deficiency or absence of endogenous testosterone in
`
`adult males; and drug/device products for urologic oncology, immunology, and endocrinology.
`
`The Company has strategic alliances and partnerships with Pfizer Inc., Idorsia Pharmaceuticals
`
`Ltd, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd, and AMAG.
`
`The Company Announces the Proposed Transaction
`
`22.
`
`On April 13, 2022, the Company jointly issued a press release announcing the
`
`Proposed Transaction. The press release stated, in pertinent part:
`
`SAN DIEGO and EWING, N.J., April 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Halozyme
`Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: HALO) ("Halozyme") and Antares Pharma, Inc.
`(NASDAQ: ATRS) ("Antares") today announced that the companies have entered
`into a definitive agreement pursuant to which Halozyme will acquire Antares for
`$5.60 per share in cash. The transaction, which values Antares at approximately
`$960 million, was unanimously approved by both the Halozyme and Antares
`Boards of Directors.
`
`
`
`5
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 6 of 15
`
`
`
`The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to Halozyme's 2022
`revenue and non-GAAP earnings and to accelerate top- and bottom-line growth
`through 2027, with multiple growth drivers beyond 2027. The combination of
`Halozyme and Antares will create a leading drug delivery and specialty product
`company. The Antares business consists of a best-in-class, differentiated, royalty
`revenue generating auto injector platform business that offers broad licensing
`opportunity, and a commercial business, with three proprietary commercial
`products.
`
`"The addition of Antares, particularly with its best-in-class auto injector platform
`and specialty commercial business, augments Halozyme's strategy, further
`strengthens our position as a leading drug delivery company and extends our
`strategy to include specialty products," said Dr. Helen Torley, president and chief
`executive officer of Halozyme. "The acquisition of Antares fits well with our
`previously discussed strategic priorities and provides substantial financial growth
`potential and disruptive solutions to significantly improve patient experiences and
`outcomes for emerging and established therapies. Halozyme is well-positioned to
`leverage Antares' value proposition, driven by a strong balance sheet, established
`industry relationships and business development experience. We look forward to
`welcoming Antares' talented team as we embark on our next chapter of
`accelerating financial growth, maximizing patient benefit, and enhancing value."
`
`Robert F. Apple, president and chief executive officer of Antares, commented,
`"We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Halozyme, as this
`transaction showcases the value of Antares' highly complementary business,
`provides our shareholders with attractive and certain value, and brings together
`industry-leading expertise and drug delivery platforms to accelerate growth and
`create new opportunities. As we remain committed to continuing to serve our
`partners, I would like to thank our employees for their hard work and dedication
`to this mission. We look forward to working with the Halozyme team to complete
`the transaction and deliver best-in-class therapies and drug delivery solutions."
`
`Compelling Financial and Strategic Benefits
`
`•
`
`Immediate Revenue and Non-GAAP Earnings Accretion and Long-Term
`Financial Upside: The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to
`Halozyme's 2022 revenue and non-GAAP earnings, supported by Antares'
`proprietary product revenues, royalty revenues and profitability. The addition
`of Antares is also expected to accelerate top- and bottom-line growth and
`enhance cash flow generation through 2027, increasing Halozyme's flexibility
`to pursue further growth drivers in the forms of new product and therapy
`launches, and partnerships.
`• Business Development to Augment Long-Term Growth, Consistent with
`Strategic Priorities: The addition of Antares' commercial products and
`existing auto injector capabilities accelerate Halozyme's strategy to drive
`long-term, durable revenue growth and value creation through focused
`
`
`
`6
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 7 of 15
`
`
`
`external growth. Halozyme expects to build on Antares' core platform
`technology and capabilities
`to drive
`incremental, durable
`revenue
`opportunities with additional intellectual property protections for Antares
`technology in place beyond 2030.
`• Substantial Market Expansion Opportunity in High Revenue Segments:
`Antares' successful development and partnership of its technology platforms
`offers a widely licensable product suite that can be broadly applied across a
`spectrum of market segments representing multiple tens of billions of dollars1
`in estimated peak sales. This includes the potential for conversion to both
`high-viscosity and high-volume auto
`injector devices, supported by
`Halozyme's extensive infrastructure and commercially validated ENHANZE
`platform technology.
`• High Growth, Durable Commercial Franchise with Proven Track
`Record: Antares' suite of FDA-approved, high quality commercial products
`and partner products utilizing the Antares auto injector technology have
`already demonstrated commercial success and are positioned for long-term
`growth. Launch of Tlando™ will leverage existing testosterone commercial
`infrastructure and capabilities in a growing therapeutic category, building on
`momentum created by Xyosted®'s success.
`• Two Highly Complementary Platforms, Each with Meaningful Pipelines:
`Antares' broadly applicable, differentiated auto injector platform is suitable
`for use with a broad range of medications. The versatility of this platform
`enables a highly licensable business with significant revenue upside. The
`combined entity will be able to leverage its deep industry expertise and
`existing commercial infrastructure in the U.S. to expand delivery capabilities
`and pursue growth opportunities within multiple small- and large-molecule
`products.
`
`Transaction Terms, Financing and Time to Closing
`
`Under the terms of the merger agreement, Halozyme will commence a cash tender
`offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Antares for $5.60 per share in
`cash. The transaction is not subject to a financing condition. Halozyme intends to
`finance the transaction using existing cash on hand and new sources of debt.
`Following completion of the transaction, Halozyme expects to maintain a strong
`balance sheet with less than 3.5x net debt-to-EBITDA ratio at the time of
`transaction close. Net debt-to-EBITDA ratio is expected to decline significantly in
`the quarters post transaction close. The closing of the tender offer will be subject
`to certain conditions, including the tender of shares representing at least a
`majority of the total number of Antares' outstanding shares of common stock, the
`expiration or termination of the HSR waiting period, and other customary
`conditions. Following the successful completion of the tender offer, Halozyme
`will acquire all remaining shares not tendered in the tender offer through a
`second-step merger at the same price. This transaction is expected to close in the
`first half of 2022.
`
`
`
`7
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 8 of 15
`
`
`
`BofA Securities and Wells Fargo Securities LLC are acting as financial advisors
`to Halozyme and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is acting as legal advisor.
`Jefferies LLC is acting as financial advisor to Antares and Skadden, Arps, Slate,
`Meagher & Flom LLP is acting as legal advisor.
`
`
`
`FALSE AND MISLEADING STATEMENTS
`AND/OR MATERIAL OMISSIONS IN THE RECOMMENDATION STATEMENT
`
`23.
`
`On April 26, 2022, the Company authorized the filing of the Recommendation
`
`Statement with the SEC. The Recommendation Statement recommends that the Company’s
`
`stockholders tender their shares in favor of the Proposed Transaction.
`
`24.
`
`Defendants were obligated to carefully review the Recommendation Statement
`
`prior to its filing with the SEC and dissemination to the Company’s unitholders to ensure that it
`
`did not contain any material misrepresentations or omissions. However, the Recommendation
`
`Statement misrepresent and/or omit material information that is necessary for the Company’s
`
`shareholders to make informed decisions concerning whether to tender their shares in favor of
`
`the Proposed Transaction.
`
`Material False and Misleading Statements or Material
`Misrepresentations or Omissions Regarding Management’s Projections
`
`25.
`
`The Recommendation Statement contains financial projections prepared by senior
`
`members of Antares’s management in connection with the Proposed Transaction, but fails to
`
`provide material information concerning such.
`
`26.
`
`The SEC has repeatedly emphasized that disclosure of non-GAAP projections can
`
`be inherently misleading, and has therefore heightened its scrutiny of the use of such
`
`projections.1 Indeed, on May 17, 2016, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance released new
`
`
`1 See, e.g., Nicolas Grabar and Sandra Flow, Non-GAAP Financial Measures: The SEC’s
`Evolving Views, Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial
`Regulation (June 24, 2016), available at https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2016/06/24/non-gaap-
`
`
`
`8
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 9 of 15
`
`
`
`and updated Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations (“C&DIs”) on the use of non-GAAP
`
`financial measures that demonstrate the SEC’s tightening policy.2 One of the new C&DIs
`
`regarding forward-looking information, such as financial projections, explicitly requires
`
`companies to provide any reconciling metrics that are available without unreasonable efforts.
`
`27.
`
`In order to make management’s projections included in the Recommendation
`
`Statement materially complete and not misleading, Defendants must provide a reconciliation
`
`table of the non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures.
`
`28.
`
`Specifically, with respect to each set of financial projections, the Company must
`
`disclose the line item projections for the financial metrics that were used to calculate the non-
`
`GAAP measures, including, but not limited to, all line items used to calculate: (i) EBIT; and (ii)
`
`Unlevered Free Cash Flow.
`
`29.
`
`Disclosure of the above line item projections is vital to provide investors with the
`
`complete mix of information necessary to make an informed decision when deciding whether to
`
`tender their shares in connection with the Proposed Transaction.
`
`Material False and Misleading Statements or Material
`Misrepresentations or Omissions Regarding Jefferies’ Opinion
`
`The Recommendation Statement contains the financial analyses and opinion of
`
`30.
`
`Jefferies LLC (“Jefferies”) concerning the Proposed Transaction but fails to provide material
`
`information concerning such.
`
`
`financial-measuresthesecs evolving-views/; Gretchen Morgenson, Fantasy Math Is Helping
`Companies Spin Losses
`Into Profits, N.Y. Times, Apr. 22, 2016, available at
`http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/24/business/fantasy-mathis-helping-companies-spin-ossesinto-
`profits.html?_r=0.
`
` 2
`
` Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Compliance & Disclosure Interpretations, U.S. SECURITIES
`available
`at
`AND
`EXCHANGE
`COMMISSION
`(May
`17,
`2017),
`https://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/guidance/nongaapinterp.htm.
`
`
`
`9
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 10 of 15
`
`
`
`31. With
`
`respect
`
`to
`
`Jefferies’ Selected Public Companies Analysis,
`
`the
`
`Recommendation Statement fails to disclose the individual multiples and metrics for each of the
`
`companies observed in the analysis.
`
`32. With respect
`
`to Jefferies’ Selected Precedent Transaction Analysis,
`
`the
`
`Recommendation Statement fails to disclose the individual multiples and metrics for each of the
`
`companies observed in its analysis.
`
`33. With respect to Jefferies’ Discounted Cash Flow Analysis, the Recommendation
`
`Statement fails to disclose: (i) the estimated present value of the standalone unlevered, after-tax
`
`free cash flows that the Company was forecasted to generate during the fiscal years ending
`
`December 31, 2022 through December 31, 2030; (ii) the Company’s implied terminal value; (iii)
`
`the inputs and assumptions underlying Jefferies’ use of perpetuity growth rates ranging from
`
`(10.0%0 to (20.0%); and (iv) the inputs and assumptions underlying Jefferies use of a discount
`
`rate range of 9.2% to 10.2%.
`
`34. When a banker’s endorsement of the fairness of a transaction is touted to
`
`shareholders, the valuation methods used to arrive at that opinion as well as the key inputs and
`
`range of ultimate values generated by those analyses must also be fairly disclosed. Moreover,
`
`the disclosure of projected financial information is material because it provides stockholders with
`
`a basis to project the future financial performance of a company and allows stockholders to
`
`better understand the financial analyses performed by the company’s financial advisor in support
`
`of its fairness opinion.
`
`35. Without the above described information, the Company’s shareholders are not
`
`fully informed with respect to the Proposed Transaction. Accordingly, in order to provide
`
`
`
`10
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 11 of 15
`
`
`
`shareholders with a complete mix of information, the omitted information described above
`
`should be disclosed.
`
`COUNT I
`
`(Against All Defendants for Violations of Section 14(d)
`of the Exchange Act and Rule 14d-9 Promulgated Thereunder)
`
`36.
`
`Plaintiff incorporates each and every allegation set forth above as if fully set forth
`
`herein.
`
`37.
`
`Section 14(d)(4) of the Exchange Act and Rule 14d-9 promulgated thereunder
`
`makes it a requirement to make full and complete disclosure in connection with tender offers.
`
`38.
`
`As discussed herein, the Recommendation Statement, while soliciting shareholder
`
`support for the Proposed Transaction, misrepresent and/or omit material facts concerning the
`
`Proposed Transaction.
`
`39.
`
`Defendants prepared, reviewed, filed and disseminated the false and misleading
`
`Recommendation Statement to Antares’s shareholders. In doing so, Defendants knew or
`
`recklessly disregarded that the Recommendation Statement failed to disclose material facts
`
`necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they
`
`were made, not misleading.
`
`40.
`
`The omissions and incomplete and misleading statements in the Recommendation
`
`Statement are material in that a reasonable shareholder would consider them important in
`
`deciding whether to tender their shares in favor of the Proposed Transaction. In addition, a
`
`reasonable investor would view such information as altering the “total mix” of information made
`
`available to shareholders.
`
`41.
`
`By virtue of their positions within the Company and/or roles in the process and in
`
`the preparation of the Recommendation Statement, Defendants were undoubtedly aware of this
`
`
`
`11
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 12 of 15
`
`
`
`information and had previously reviewed it, including participating in the Proposed Transaction
`
`negotiation and sales process and reviewing Antares’s financial advisor’s complete financial
`
`analyses purportedly summarized in the Recommendation Statement.
`
`42.
`
`The Individual Defendants undoubtedly reviewed and relied upon the omitted
`
`information identified above in connection with their decision to approve and recommend the
`
`Proposed Transaction.
`
`43.
`
`Antares is deemed negligent as a result of the Individual Defendants’ negligence
`
`in preparing and reviewing the Recommendation Statement.
`
`44.
`
`Defendants knew that Plaintiff and other shareholders would rely upon the
`
`Recommendation Statement in determining whether to tender their shares in favor of the
`
`Proposed Transaction.
`
`45.
`
`As a direct and proximate result of Defendants’ unlawful course of conduct in
`
`violation of Section 14(d)(4) of the Exchange Act and Rule 14d-9 promulgated thereunder,
`
`absent injunctive relief from the Court, Plaintiff and other shareholders will suffer irreparable
`
`injury by being denied the opportunity to make an informed decision as to whether to tender their
`
`shares in favor of the Proposed Transaction.
`
`46.
`
`Plaintiff has no adequate remedy at law.
`
`COUNT II
`
`(Against All Defendants for Violation
`Of Section 14(e) of the Exchange Act)
`
`47.
`
`Plaintiff incorporates each and every allegation set forth above as if fully set forth
`
`herein.
`
`48.
`
`Defendants violated Section 14(e) of the Exchange Act by issuing the
`
`Recommendation Statement in which they made false statements of material fact or failed to
`
`
`
`12
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 13 of 15
`
`
`
`state all material facts that would be necessary to make the statements made, in light of the
`
`circumstances, not misleading, or engaged in deceptive or manipulative acts or practices, in
`
`connection with the Proposed Transaction.
`
`49.
`
`Defendants knew that Plaintiff and the Company’s shareholders would rely upon
`
`their statements made in the Recommendation Statement in determining whether to tender shares
`
`in favor of the Proposed Transaction.
`
`50.
`
`As a direct and proximate result of Defendants’ unlawful course of conduct in
`
`violation of Section 14(e) of the Exchange Act, absent injunctive relief from the Court, Plaintiff
`
`and other shareholders will suffer irreparable injury by being denied the opportunity to make an
`
`informed decision as to whether to tender their shares in favor of the Proposed Transaction.
`
`COUNT III
`
`(Against the Individual Defendants for
`Violations of Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act)
`
`51.
`
`Plaintiff incorporates each and every allegation set forth above as if fully set forth
`
`herein.
`
`52.
`
`The Individual Defendants acted as controlling persons of Antares within the
`
`meaning of Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act as alleged herein. By virtue of their positions as
`
`officers and/or directors of Antares, and participation in and/or awareness of the Company’s
`
`operations and/or intimate knowledge of the false statements contained in the Recommendation
`
`Statement filed with the SEC, they had the power to influence and control and did influence and
`
`control, directly or indirectly, the decision-making of the Company, including the content and
`
`dissemination of the various statements which Plaintiff contends are false and misleading.
`
`53.
`
`Each of the Individual Defendants were provided with or had unlimited access to
`
`copies of the Recommendation Statement and other statements alleged by Plaintiff to be
`
`
`
`13
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 14 of 15
`
`
`
`misleading prior to and/or shortly after these statements were issued and had the ability to
`
`prevent the issuance of the statements or cause the statements to be corrected.
`
`54.
`
`In particular, each of the Individual Defendants had direct and supervisory
`
`involvement in the day-to-day operations of the Company, and, therefore, is presumed to have
`
`had the power to control or influence the particular transactions giving rise to the securities
`
`violations alleged herein, and exercised the same. The Recommendation Statement contain the
`
`unanimous recommendation of each of the Individual Defendants to approve the Proposed
`
`Transaction. They were thus directly connected with and involved in the making of the
`
`Recommendation Statement.
`
`55.
`
`As set forth above, the Individual Defendants had the ability to exercise control
`
`over and did control a person or persons who have each violated Section 14(e) of the Exchange
`
`Act, by their acts and omissions as alleged herein. By virtue of their positions as controlling
`
`persons and the acts described herein, the Individual Defendants are liable pursuant to Section
`
`20(a) of the Exchange Act.
`
`56.
`
`As a direct and proximate result of Individual Defendants’ conduct, Plaintiff will
`
`be irreparably harmed.
`
`57.
`
`Plaintiff has no adequate remedy at law.
`
`PRAYER FOR RELIEF
`
`
`
`WHEREFORE, Plaintiff prays for judgment and relief as follows:
`
`A.
`
`Preliminarily and permanently enjoining Defendants and all persons acting in
`
`concert with them from proceeding with, consummating, or closing the Proposed Transaction;
`
`B.
`
`Directing the Individual Defendants to disseminate an Amendment to the
`
`Recommendation Statement that does not contain any untrue statements of material fact and that
`
`
`
`14
`
`

`

`Case 1:22-cv-03550 Document 1 Filed 05/03/22 Page 15 of 15
`
`
`
`states all material facts required in it or necessary to make the statements contained therein not
`
`misleading;
`
`C.
`
`Directing Defendants to account to Plaintiff for their damages sustained because
`
`of the wrongs complained of herein;
`
`D.
`
`Awarding Plaintiff the costs of this action, including reasonable allowance for
`
`Plaintiff’s attorneys’ and experts’ fees; and
`
`E.
`
`Granting such other and further relief as this Court may deem just and proper.
`
`
`
`Plaintiff hereby demands a trial by jury.
`
`DEMAND FOR TRIAL BY JURY
`
`
`Dated: May 3, 2022
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Respectfully submitted,
`
`By: /s/ Joshua M. Lifshitz
`Joshua M. Lifshitz
`Email: jml@jlclasslaw.com
`LIFSHITZ LAW PLLC
`1190 Broadway
`Hewlett, New York 11557
`Telephone: (516) 493-9780
`Facsimile: (516) 280-7376
`
`Attorneys for Plaintiff
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`15
`
`

This document is available on Docket Alarm but you must sign up to view it.


Or .

Accessing this document will incur an additional charge of $.

After purchase, you can access this document again without charge.

Accept $ Charge
throbber

Still Working On It

This document is taking longer than usual to download. This can happen if we need to contact the court directly to obtain the document and their servers are running slowly.

Give it another minute or two to complete, and then try the refresh button.

throbber

A few More Minutes ... Still Working

It can take up to 5 minutes for us to download a document if the court servers are running slowly.

Thank you for your continued patience.

This document could not be displayed.

We could not find this document within its docket. Please go back to the docket page and check the link. If that does not work, go back to the docket and refresh it to pull the newest information.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

You need a Paid Account to view this document. Click here to change your account type.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

Set your membership status to view this document.

With a Docket Alarm membership, you'll get a whole lot more, including:

  • Up-to-date information for this case.
  • Email alerts whenever there is an update.
  • Full text search for other cases.
  • Get email alerts whenever a new case matches your search.

Become a Member

One Moment Please

The filing “” is large (MB) and is being downloaded.

Please refresh this page in a few minutes to see if the filing has been downloaded. The filing will also be emailed to you when the download completes.

Your document is on its way!

If you do not receive the document in five minutes, contact support at support@docketalarm.com.

Sealed Document

We are unable to display this document, it may be under a court ordered seal.

If you have proper credentials to access the file, you may proceed directly to the court's system using your government issued username and password.


Access Government Site

We are redirecting you
to a mobile optimized page.





Document Unreadable or Corrupt

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket

We are unable to display this document.

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket