NERA Economic Consulting and Cornerstone Research have released their respective 2018 annual reports on federal securities class action filings. As usual, the different methodologies employed by the two organizations have led to different numbers, although they both identify the same general trends.
The findings for 2018 include:
(1) The reports agree that filings continue to be at near-record levels, driven by a steady growth in “standard” filings alleging violations of Rule 10b-5, Section 11, and/or Section 12 and the continued shift to federal court of M&A-related cases. NERA finds that there were 441 filings (compared with 434 filings in 2017), while Cornerstone finds that there were 403 filings (compared with 412 filings in 2017).
(2) Both NERA and Cornerstone report that approximately 8% of publicly-listed companies were subject to securities class actions in 2018. While that is an all-time high, it also is a function of the fact that the overall number of publicly-listed companies has declined substantially over the last 25 years (the result of a combination of fewer IPOs and M&A activity).
(3) Filings against foreign issuers had steadily increased from 2013-2017, with these companies facing a disproportionate (as compared to their percentage of listings) risk of securities class action litigation. In 2018, however, both NERA and Cornerstone find a decrease in these filings, although the overall number of filings against foreign issuers (Cornerstone – 47; NERA – 43) remains high as compared to the historical average.
(4) NERA reports that, in 2013, 24% of filings alleging violations of Rule 10b-5 contained insider trading allegations. That percentage has dropped precipitously since 2013, with only 5% of last year’s filings containing insider trading allegations. NERA attributes the decline to the regulatory crackdown on insider trading and the increased corporate use of Rule 10b5-1 trading plans.
(5) NERA finds that the average settlement value for standard cases (excluding settlements over $1 billion) increased from $25 million (2017) to $30 million (2018). Meanwhile, the median settlement value for these cases increased from $6 million (2017) to $13 million (2018).
The NERA report can be found here. The Cornerstone report can be found here.
The 10b-5 Daily 