Over Memorial Day weekend, the Los Angeles Times ran a critical two-part story on Cisco Systems Inc. The first article focused on Cisco’s loans to financially-troubled customers. The second article focused on Cisco’s acquisitions of companies backed by Sequoia Capital. The author noted that last month Judge Ware of the N.D. of Cal. refused to dismiss the consolidated securities class action against the company, its auditor, and top executives.
Quote of note (first article): “Ware wrote that the allegations contained in the 198-page complaint, including a claim that Cisco artificially inflated its revenue through its lending operation, were ‘sufficient to support a strong inference’ of wrongdoing. His ruling clears the way for investor attorneys, who are seeking billions of dollars in damages, to collect internal documents and conduct sworn interviews with Chief Executive John Chambers and other executives.”
The 10b-5 Daily 