Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Humanigen, Inc. and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, and docketed under 22-cv-05258, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Humanigen securities between May 28, 2021 and July 12, 2022, both dates inclusive (the “Class Period”), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants’ violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, against the Company and certain of its top officials.
If you are a shareholder who purchased or otherwise acquired Humanigen securities during the Class Period, you have until October 25, 2022 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at newaction@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.
Humanigen is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that focuses on preventing and treating an immune hyper-response called “cytokine storm”, a physiological reaction in which the immune system causes an uncontrolled and excessive release of pro-inflammatory signaling molecules called cytokines, the sudden release of which in large quantities can cause multisystem organ failure and death. The Company’s lead product candidate is its proprietary antibody lenzilumab, which is under development as a treatment for, among other things, cytokine storm associated with COVID-19.
Among other trials, Humanigen is investigating lenzilumab for the treatment of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the ACTIV-5/BET-B study, which is part of a directed public-private partnership with the National Institutes of Health.
In May 2021, Humanigen submitted an application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) requesting Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”) for lenzilumab for the treatment of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (the “lenzilumab EUA”).
The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) lenzilumab was less effective in treating hospitalized COVID-19 patients than Defendants had represented; (ii) as a result, the FDA was unlikely to approve the lenzilumab EUA and the ACTIV-5/BET-B study was unlikely to meet its primary endpoint; (iii) accordingly, lenzilumab’s clinical and commercial prospects were overstated; and (iv) as a result, the Company’s public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.
On September 9, 2021, Humanigen issued a press release announcing that the FDA had rejected the lenzilumab EUA, advising investors that, “[i]n its letter, [the] FDA stated that it was unable to conclude that the known and potential benefits of lenzilumab outweigh the known and potential risks of its use as a treatment for COVID-19.”
On this news, Humanigen’s stock price fell $7.14 per share, or 47.25%, to close at $7.97 per share on September 9, 2021.
Then, on July 13, 2022, Humanigen disclosed that lenzilumab had failed to show statistical significance on the primary endpoint of the ACTIV-5/BET-B study.
On this news, Humanigen’s stock price fell $2.38 per share, or 79.6%, to close at $0.61 per share on July 13, 2022.
Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com
CONTACT:
Robert S. Willoughby
Pomerantz LLP
rswilloughby@pomlaw.com
888-476-6529 ext. 7980