PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 25 2004 LAWFUEL – Law, legal, class action, lawsuit, litigation news
Barrack, Rodos & Bacine today issued the following:
A class action has been commenced in the United States District Court for
the District of Connecticut on behalf of purchasers of the publicly traded
securities of Star Gas Partners, L.P. (NYSE: SGU, SGH) (“Star Gas” or the
“Company”) between April 30, 2003 and October 18, 2004, inclusive (the “Class
Period”).
The complaint charges Star Gas, Irik P. Sevin, and Ami Trauber with
violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. The complaint alleges that Star Gas
failed to disclose and misrepresented the following material adverse facts
which were known to defendants or recklessly disregarded by them: (1) that
Star Gas was unable to pass costs of rising heating oil prices on to its
customers because it had earlier acquired heating oil at a much lower cost;
(2) that as a result of this, defendants were unable to increase or maintain
profit margins in its heating oil segment; (3) that Star Gas was experiencing
massive customer attrition; and (4) that the operational restructuring of the
Company’s Petro heating oil division, undertaken at the beginning of the Class
Period, was a failure because of delays in the centralization of its dispatch
system.
On October 18, 2004, TheStreet.com issued an article, entitled “Stocks In
Motion: Star Gas,” which stated: “Earnings at Star Gas’ heating oil unit are
expected to decline substantially, the company said, which will not permit it
to meet the borrowing conditions under its working capital line. Star is
currently in talks with lenders to modify conditions and other terms that
would allow its business unit to operate through the winter. If lenders do not
agree, however, to offer modified terms, Star said it could be forced to seek
alternative financing on `extremely disadvantageous’ terms or even be forced
to seek bankruptcy protection.” On this news, Star Gas’s stock price dropped
to $4.32 per share from a closing price of $21.60 on the previous trading day,
a decline of 80%, on unusually high trading volume.
The complaint seeks to recover damages on behalf of all persons who
purchased Star Gas securities during the Class Period. Barrack, Rodos &
Bacine has extensive experience in prosecuting investor class actions
involving financial fraud. Barrack, Rodos & Bacine has prosecuted securities,
antitrust and consumer class actions for more than 25 years. The firm has
offices in Philadelphia, San Diego, New York and New Jersey and has been
designated lead counsel by federal and state courts across the country in
large, complex cases. For more information about Barrack, Rodos & Bacine,
please visit their website at http://www.barrack.com.
If you are a member of the Class described above, you may, no later than
December 20, 2004, move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff of the Class, if
you so choose. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet
certain legal requirements. If you wish to discuss this action or have any
questions concerning this case or your rights or interests, please contact
Maxine S. Goldman, Shareholder Relations Manager, Barrack, Rodos & Bacine,
3300 Two Commerce Square, 2001 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103,
mgoldman@barrack.com, 215-963-0600, fax number 215-963-0838.
