SMG - Class Action Lawsuit Against Scotts Miracle-Gro: Investors Allege 'Misleading Information' And 'Artificially Inflated Prices' | Benzinga
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a stockholder rights law firm, revealed Friday that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE:SMG) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. The lawsuit was submitted on behalf of all persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Scotts securities between Nov. 3, 2021, and August 1, 2023. Investors have until August 2, 2024 to apply to the Court to be appointed as lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
The Ohio-based gardening giant also has a cannabis-focused subsidiary, The Hawthorne Gardening Company, which focuses on hydroponics for the emerging marijuana growing market. Scott Miracle-Gro, considered the world's largest marketer of branded consumer products for lawn and garden care, sells the majority of its products through third-party distributors.
‘Highly Leveraged’
In the period between Nov. 3, 2021, and August 1, 2023 (class period), the company "was highly leveraged, with its senior secured credit facilities containing various restrictive covenants and cross-default provisions that require the company maintain specific financial ratios," reads theBragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.'s press release.
A breach of any of these convents would enable the company's lenders to declare all outstanding indebtedness immediately due and payable. One of the covenants demanded ...