| Company: | McDonald's Corporation |
| Ticker Symbol: | NYSE: MCD |
| Class Period: | December 14, 2001 to January 22, 2003 |
| Court: | Northern District, IL |
| Date Filed: | Apr-08-04 |
| Lead Plaintiff Deadline: | Jun-04-04 |
| Allegations: |
A class action lawsuit is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on behalf of purchasers of the securities of McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD) ("McDonald's" or the "Company") between December 14, 2001 and January 22, 2003, inclusive ("Class Period").
The Complaint alleges that McDonald's, along with certain officers and directors ("Individual Defendants"), violated the federal securities laws by issuing a series of materially false and misleading statements to the market. These misstatements have had the effect of artificially inflating the market price of McDonald's securities.
Specifically, the Complaint charges that the Company misrepresented the state of its business and future prospects by failing to disclose that hundreds of its restaurants were underperforming and that the Company had incurred hundreds of millions of dollars in unrecorded asset impairment and other charges.
Defendants' scheme began to unravel when in September 2002, the Company reported that "comparable sales" (i.e., year-over-year sales comparisons for restaurants that had been open for more than thirteen months) had continued to decline, especially in U.S. and European markets, making it impossible for the Company to meet its 2002 earnings guidance.
Then on January 23, 2003, defendants announced that the Company had incurred losses of more than $810 million related, primarily, to the closure of over 700 underperforming restaurants and the write-off of hundreds of millions of dollars of previously capitalized technology costs.
Prior to the disclosure of the adverse facts described above, the Company completed fixed-rate debt offerings of at least $900 million at highly favorable interest rates. In addition, the Individual Defendants, as well as other McDonald's insiders, sold over 939,000 shares of McDonald's common shares, at or near market highs, generating proceeds of more than $26 million.
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.
The Complaint alleges that McDonald's, along with certain officers and directors ("Individual Defendants"), violated the federal securities laws by issuing a series of materially false and misleading statements to the market. These misstatements have had the effect of artificially inflating the market price of McDonald's securities.
Specifically, the Complaint charges that the Company misrepresented the state of its business and future prospects by failing to disclose that hundreds of its restaurants were underperforming and that the Company had incurred hundreds of millions of dollars in unrecorded asset impairment and other charges.
Defendants' scheme began to unravel when in September 2002, the Company reported that "comparable sales" (i.e., year-over-year sales comparisons for restaurants that had been open for more than thirteen months) had continued to decline, especially in U.S. and European markets, making it impossible for the Company to meet its 2002 earnings guidance.
Then on January 23, 2003, defendants announced that the Company had incurred losses of more than $810 million related, primarily, to the closure of over 700 underperforming restaurants and the write-off of hundreds of millions of dollars of previously capitalized technology costs.
Prior to the disclosure of the adverse facts described above, the Company completed fixed-rate debt offerings of at least $900 million at highly favorable interest rates. In addition, the Individual Defendants, as well as other McDonald's insiders, sold over 939,000 shares of McDonald's common shares, at or near market highs, generating proceeds of more than $26 million.
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.
If you feel you qualify for damages or remedies that might be awarded in this class action please fill in our form on the right to submit your complaint.
If your injustice does not match the complaint described above, please use this form to register your complaint. Thank you.
