Yesterdays history lesson; Diana Corp.
On April 30, 1997, a securities fraud class action was commenced in the United States District Court for the Central District of California entitled "Pamela Binder and Jeffrey Campbell v. Diana Corporation, Sattel Communications Corporation, Sattel Communications L.L.C., Sattel Technologies, Inc., Streamlogic Corporation, Concentric Network Corporation, Richard Y. Fisher, Donald Runge and James Fiedler," on behalf of those investors who purchased the common stock of Diana Corporation during the period between November 1, 1995 and March 7, 1997 ("the Class Period"). The complaint charges Diana Corp., a number of affiliated entities, and a number of current and former officers and directors with conspiring to manipulate the price of Diana Corp. common stock through the device of a stream of false statements, material misrepresentations and omissions regarding: (i) the state of technological advancement, capabilities, features, marketability and usefulness of Sattel Communications' principal products, a "digital switching system" or "DSS," for use with voice, data, video and graphic transmissions, and a switching system for Internet access based on DSS, called "Datanet"; (ii) Sattel Communications' ability to successfully develop, produce and deliver the products as described to end users; and (iii) Sattel Communications' sales, the credit-worthiness of its customers, certain financial transactions connected to its sales and customers, and the financial resources of Sattel Communications and its joint venture partner. Diana was de-listed from the New York stock exchange effective March 7, 1997. During the Class Period, the price of Diana stock rose from approximately $5 per share, to an intra-day high of $120, and then fell below its original price level. The Complaint further alleges that, during the Class Period, individual defendants sold an aggregate of approximately 1.15 million shares of Diana common stock while in possession of material nonpublic information concerning the true adverse facts, at prices up to $46 per share, for gross proceeds of approximately $16.6 million. Plaintiffs seek to recover damages on behalf of all investors who purchased Diana stock during the Class Period.
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