I haven't followed the company and I can't imagine why Giuliani would want to get involved. In fairness, here is the company's response.
Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. Responds to False and Misleading Article in USA Today
Friday March 18, 3:47 pm ET
LOS ANGELES, March 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: APDN - News), a security solutions company focused on supply chain management relating to counterfeiting, fraud, piracy and product diversion, said USA TODAY, in an article today entitled, "Giuliani firm's deal to advise company raises questions," made false and misleading comments regarding Applied DNA.
In its article, USA TODAY stated that Applied DNA's shares increased from $0.65 after the Giuliani Partners deal was announced on November 10, 2004 to $2.39. However, the article failed to indicate that the closing stock price for Applied DNA's shares was $0.93 the day after this announcement, $0.75 six days later and $0.82 on December 1, 2004. In the three weeks after the announcement of the agreement, the shares did not trade above $1.18, and in only five of the seventeen trading days after the announcement, did the stock trade above $1.00. The stock traded at a high of $2.39 on December 7 after Applied DNA announced that it had entered into a contract with a Washington state government agency.
In commenting on the USA Today article, Peter Brocklesby, President of Applied DNA, stated, "The article in USA Today is false, and misleads the public by first, alleging that our stock price increased almost four-fold as a result of entering into an agreement with Giuliani Partners, and second, insinuating that there might have been market manipulation involved. We issued a press release (which is available at adnas.com on December 7, 2004, and disclosed that we had received a contract with a Washington state government agency for our products and services. This was the first contract we had secured and we can understand the market's favorable reaction to this news. To suggest that we may have done anything involving market manipulation is completely and utterly false."
Mr. Brocklesby further commented, "Giuliani Partners was retained by the new management team of Applied DNA Sciences to provide strategic advice and work with us as we considered expanding the uses of DNA marker technology. Giuliani Partners also agreed to work with our new management team as we restructure the company, which involves the publicly-announced transaction with Biowell Technology and other changes to the management team, outside advisors, and Board of Directors."
Continuing, Mr. Brocklesby said, "The information in the article relating to the Company is old news and has all been fully disclosed. We have new management in place that has worked hard and is committed to making us a successful competitor in the security and theft protection industry. While we have had significant losses since inception, 80% of the losses announced are due to issuances of stock in lieu of cash for payment to employees, consultants and vendors, which is typical with most start-up companies. In the last four months, we have received our first contract for products, signed a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy, raised over $7 million in new financing and completed a successful round of testing on a new petrochemical DNA marker. We believe that the Company is on the right path toward success."
About Applied DNA Sciences, Inc.
Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. provides proprietary DNA-embedded security solutions, using plant DNA, to verify authenticity and protect corporate and government agencies from counterfeiting, fraud, piracy, product diversion, identity theft and unauthorized intrusion into physical plant and databases. Applied DNA Sciences, Inc., 9229 West Sunset Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90069; Tel: 310.860.1362; Fax: 310.860.1303. adnas.com.
Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, such as statements relating to the Company's ability to drive technological developments and the acceptance and timing of product introductions, are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, including timely development and acceptance of new products, the impact of competitive products and pricing, the timely development and release of products by suppliers, and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic filings as filed with the SEC.
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Source: Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. |
