From BNN Bloomberg
Aphria Inc. (NYSE:APHA) concluded its Special Committee Review following months of turmoil and executive shakeups wrought from the Hindenburg Research short-seller report late last year. Not surprisingly, the company found that its acquisition of Latin American assets came within an “acceptable range” as compared to others in the industry.
Still, that’s not to say the company kept its nose clean during the whole affair. According to a statement released on Friday, Aphria noted that conflicts of interest not disclosed to the board did exist.
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“Though I was not part of Aphria at the time of the LATAM acquisition, the Special Committee's findings give me and the Board full confidence that it was executed at an acceptable value and is consistent with the Company's international growth strategy," said Irwin D. Simon, Aphria's independent Board Chair in a statement.
Since the release of the short-seller report in December, Aphria saw stock prices plummet and investor confidence wane. Onetime-popular CEO Vic Neufeld was forced to step down following the entire affair.
However, since then, Aphria has returned to pre-report levels while fighting off a hostile takeover bid from U.S.-based Green Growth Brands (OTCMKTS:GGBXF).
Hindenburg Research Founder Nathan Anderson told BNN Bloomberg that the Special Committee’s findings validated the original short-seller report.
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“The review largely corroborated our findings that acquisition prices were high and that multiple insiders had undisclosed conflicts of interest. We hope the company can turn a new leaf going forward," he said in an email to BNN Bloomberg.