NEW YORK, Feb. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP ("Robbins Geller") (http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/bhp/) today announced that a class action has been commenced on behalf of an institutional investor in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of purchasers of BHP Billiton Limited ("BHP Ltd.") (NYSE: BHP) and BHP Billiton Plc ("BHP Plc") (NYSE: BBL) (together, "BHP" or the "Company") American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs") during the period between September 25, 2014 and November 30, 2015, inclusive (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, Samuel H. Rudman or David A. Rosenfeld of Robbins Geller at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at djr@rgrdlaw.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 http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/bhp/. 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 BHP and certain of its current and former executive officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. BHP is a leading global resources company and is among the world's top producers of major commodities, including iron ore, metallurgical and energy coal, conventional and unconventional oil and gas, copper, aluminum, manganese, uranium, nickel and silver. The Company operates under a Dual Listed Company structure, with parent companies BHP Ltd. and BHP Plc operated as a single economic entity by a unified board and management team.
The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, defendants knew or recklessly disregarded the precarious condition of mining operations and facilities at the Samarco mine, a Brazilian mining operation jointly owned by BHP and Vale S.A., yet made materially false and misleading statements concerning the Company's commitment to safety and the implementation of safety and monitoring protocols at the mine sites.
On November 5, 2015, a dam burst at the Samarco mining site, flooding the nearby town and river with 60 million cubic meters of mud and mine waste. On that date and thereafter, the complaint alleges that the price of BHP ADRs declined in concert with the disclosure of news and analyst reports regarding the cause of the dam failure, the Company's failure to adhere to safety standards that defendants emphasized during the Class Period, and BHP's potential liability and financial exposure for the dam failure. When the truth about the Company's operations was revealed between November 5 and 30, 2015, the price of BHP ADRs declined significantly, harming investors. As a result of this news, the trading price of BHP Ltd.'s ADRs declined from $33.43 on November 4, 2015 (the day before the incident) to $26.68 on November 30, 2015 – a decline of more than 20%. The trading price of BHP Plc's ADRs declined similarly, falling from $32.84 on November 4, 2015 to $24.25 on November 30, 2015 – a decline of more than 26%.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of BHP Ltd. and BHP Plc ADRs during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Robbins Geller, which has extensive experience in prosecuting investor class actions including actions involving financial fraud.
Robbins Geller, with 200 lawyers in ten offices, represents U.S. and international institutional investors in contingency-based securities and corporate litigation. The firm has obtained many of the largest securities class action recoveries in history and was ranked first in both the amount and number of shareholder class action recoveries in ISS's SCAS Top 50 report for 2014. Please visit http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/BHP/ for more information.
Contact:
Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP
Samuel H. Rudman, 800-449-4900
David A. Rosenfeld
djr@rgrdlaw.com
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SOURCE Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP
