NEW YORK, Nov. 22, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Alkermes plc (“Alkermes” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ:ALKS) and certain of its officers.  The class action, filed in United States District Court, for the Southern District of New York, and docketed under 17-cv-09178, is on behalf of a class consisting of investors who purchased or otherwise acquired Alkermes securities, seeking to recover compensable damages caused by defendants’ violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

If you are a shareholder who purchased Alkermes securities between February 24, 2015, and November 3, 2017, both dates inclusive, you have until January 22, 2018, 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 rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 9980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and amount of shares purchased. 

[Click here to join this class action]

Alkermes plc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of treatments for central nervous system disorders such as addiction, schizophrenia, depression and diabetes.  The Company’s marketed products include Vivitrol (naltrexone for extended-release injectable suspension), a treatment for alcohol and opioid dependence.

The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Company’s business, operational and compliance policies. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that:  (i) Alkermes systemically engaged in deceptive marketing campaigns to influence policymakers to use Vivitrol in addiction treatment programs over more scientifically proven and efficacious alternatives; (ii) the foregoing conduct, when disclosed, would foreseeably subject Alkermes to heightened regulatory and legislative scrutiny; (iii) accordingly, the Company’s revenues derived from Vivitrol during the Class Period were unsustainable; and (iv) as a result of the foregoing, Alkermes shares traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period, and class members suffered significant losses and damages.

On June ​11, 2017, The New York Times published an article entitled “Seizing On Opioid Crisis, a Drug Maker Lobbies Hard for its Product.”  The article described Alkermes’ aggressive efforts to market Vivitrol while denigrating the efficacy of other addiction treatments.

On this news, Alkermes’ share price fell $2.19, or 3.55%, to close at $59.47 on June 12, 2017.

On November 6, 2017, U.S. Senator Kamala Harris announced the opening of an investigation into Alkermes’ sales practices for Vivitrol.  Senator Harris specifically stated that the Company “aggressively marketed” its medication, convincing judges and prison officials to use it rather than more proven addiction-treatment products, and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars lobbying policymakers.  According to Harris, Alkermes promoted Vivitrol by using a “speaker’s bureau composed of doctors paid to promote the drug.”

On this news, Alkermes’ share price fell $2.23, or 4.37%, to close at $48.76 on November 6, 2017.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Florida, and Los Angeles, 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, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm 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.pomerantzlaw.com

CONTACT:
Robert S. Willoughby
Pomerantz LLP
rswilloughby@pomlaw.com 

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