MARIETTA, Ga., Oct. 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- MiMedx Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDXG), the leading biopharmaceutical company developing and marketing regenerative and therapeutic biologics utilizing human placental tissue allografts with patent-protected processes for multiple sectors of healthcare, announced today that the Company has become aware that shortseller Marc Cohodes has launched a website dedicated solely to posting defamatory and false information regarding MiMedx. As part of this launch, Mr. Cohodes has posted a fake email from an anonymous email address identified only as "currentemployee." Mr. Cohodes has timed the posting of this fake email to occur immediately before MiMedx's shareholder call, presumably in an attempt to draw attention away from the very positive results of the last quarter. Please refer to the Company's press release of October 26, 2017.
MiMedx has received a copy of the fraudulent email and shared it with the Board of Directors who conducted an investigation, and confirmed that it is indeed fraudulent. It is clear for numerous reasons that the author of the fraudulent e-mail used by Mr. Cohodes is not, in fact, a current employee. Among other things, the misinformed way that the author describes many of these topics reveals his lack of knowledge of the operations of MiMedx, and confirms he is simply fabricating information or repeating allegations that were previously made by the various anonymous persons issuing negative reports.
Notably, the fraudulent email used by Mr. Cohodes was sent anonymously, to avoid having to answer in litigation for such false statements. The e-mail service provider, "ProtonMail," specifically promotes itself to users seeking to hide their identities and was clearly chosen for that purpose here (ProtonMail states that it does not require its users to provide any identifying information, does not keep IP logs so it may evade legal attempts to identify its users, and has incorporated itself in Switzerland for the same reason).
Mr. Cohodes' website and posting of this fraudulent email is precisely the type of behavior that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned about. The SEC previously issued an alert warning "investors about fraudsters who may attempt to manipulate share prices by using social media to spread false or misleading information about stocks." The alert can be reviewed at the following link, and should be read by all investors:
https://www.sec.gov/oiea/investor-alerts-bulletins/ia_rumors.html
Additionally, MiMedx has become aware that Mr. Cohodes has been contacting current MiMedx employees, and making false and defamatory statements to them regarding MiMedx, thereby supporting our belief that that he is attempting to manipulate the market to bring down MiMedx's stock price to support his own short position. MiMedx intends to inform the authorities regarding Mr. Cohodes's improper contact with our employees. As the SEC warns in its alert, as a result of Mr. Cohodes' actions, the Company expects the trading today to be chaotic, as the shorts will fraudulently use this posting as catalyst to force the stock price down towards their nefarious ends.
Parker H. "Pete" Petit, Chairman and CEO, commented, "I implore hedge fund managers and other short sellers to distance yourself from this type of misconduct, which we believe is corrupt and illegal stock manipulation. This conduct will be clearly exposed to all regulators, and you should understand the expected results. You know the legal responses that MiMedx will have. MiMedx has the resources, experience and contacts to call this behavior into question in the proper manner."
About MiMedx
MiMedx® is the leading biopharmaceutical company developing and marketing regenerative and therapeutic biologics utilizing human placental tissue allografts with patent-protected processes for multiple sectors of healthcare. "Innovations in Regenerative Medicine" is the framework behind our mission to give physicians products and tissues to help the body heal itself. We process the human placental tissue utilizing our proprietary PURION® Process among other processes, to produce safe and effective allografts. MiMedx proprietary processing methodology employs aseptic processing techniques in addition to terminal sterilization. MiMedx is the leading supplier of placental tissue, having supplied over 1,000,000 allografts to date for application in the Wound Care, Burn, Surgical, Orthopedic, Spine, Sports Medicine, Ophthalmic and Dental sectors of healthcare. For additional information, please visit www.mimedx.com.
Important Cautionary Statement
This press release includes forward-looking statements. These statements also may be identified by words such as "believe," "except," "may," "plan," "potential," "will" and similar expressions, and are based on our current beliefs and expectations. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and we caution investors against placing undue reliance on such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Among the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include that different or additional facts may be discovered that change conclusions. For more detailed information on the risks and uncertainties, please review the Risk Factors section of our most recent annual report or quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and we assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.
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MiMedx has received a copy of the fraudulent email and shared it with the Board of Directors who conducted an investigation, and confirmed that it is indeed fraudulent. It is clear for numerous reasons that the author of the fraudulent e-mail used by Mr. Cohodes is not, in fact, a current employee. Among other things, the misinformed way that the author describes many of these topics reveals his lack of knowledge of the operations of MiMedx, and confirms he is simply fabricating information or repeating allegations that were previously made by the various anonymous persons issuing negative reports.
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Notably, the fraudulent email used by Mr. Cohodes was sent anonymously, to avoid having to answer in litigation for such false statements. The e-mail service provider, "ProtonMail," specifically promotes itself to users seeking to hide their identities and was clearly chosen for that purpose here (ProtonMail states that it does not require its users to provide any identifying information, does not keep IP logs so it may evade legal attempts to identify its users, and has incorporated itself in Switzerland for the same reason).
Mr. Cohodes' website and posting of this fraudulent email is precisely the type of behavior that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned about. The SEC previously issued an alert warning "investors about fraudsters who may attempt to manipulate share prices by using social media to spread false or misleading information about stocks." The alert can be reviewed at the following link, and should be read by all investors:
https://www.sec.gov/oiea/investor-alerts-bulletins/ia_rumors.html
Additionally, MiMedx has become aware that Mr. Cohodes has been contacting current MiMedx employees, and making false and defamatory statements to them regarding MiMedx, thereby supporting our belief that that he is attempting to manipulate the market to bring down MiMedx's stock price to support his own short position. MiMedx intends to inform the authorities regarding Mr. Cohodes's improper contact with our employees. As the SEC warns in its alert, as a result of Mr. Cohodes' actions, the Company expects the trading today to be chaotic, as the shorts will fraudulently use this posting as catalyst to force the stock price down towards their nefarious ends.
Parker H. "Pete" Petit, Chairman and CEO, commented, "I implore hedge fund managers and other short sellers to distance yourself from this type of misconduct, which we believe is corrupt and illegal stock manipulation. This conduct will be clearly exposed to all regulators, and you should understand the expected results. You know the legal responses that MiMedx will have. MiMedx has the resources, experience and contacts to call this behavior into question in the proper manner."
About MiMedx
MiMedx® is the leading biopharmaceutical company developing and marketing regenerative and therapeutic biologics utilizing human placental tissue allografts with patent-protected processes for multiple sectors of healthcare. "Innovations in Regenerative Medicine" is the framework behind our mission to give physicians products and tissues to help the body heal itself. We process the human placental tissue utilizing our proprietary PURION® Process among other processes, to produce safe and effective allografts. MiMedx proprietary processing methodology employs aseptic processing techniques in addition to terminal sterilization. MiMedx is the leading supplier of placental tissue, having supplied over 1,000,000 allografts to date for application in the Wound Care, Burn, Surgical, Orthopedic, Spine, Sports Medicine, Ophthalmic and Dental sectors of healthcare. For additional information, please visit www.mimedx.com.
Important Cautionary Statement
This press release includes forward-looking statements. These statements also may be identified by words such as "believe," "except," "may," "plan," "potential," "will" and similar expressions, and are based on our current beliefs and expectations. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and we caution investors against placing undue reliance on such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Among the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include that different or additional facts may be discovered that change conclusions. For more detailed information on the risks and uncertainties, please review the Risk Factors section of our most recent annual report or quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and we assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.
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SOURCE MiMedx Group, Inc.
