Slater and Gordon eyes Murray Goulburn class action

Slater and Gordon is investigating whether Murray Goulburn has misled the market, in wake of its profit downgrade.

Slater and Gordon is investigating a potential investor class action against Murray Goulburn in the wake of its shock profit downgrade this week.

The claim, which Slater and Gordon is investigating together with litigation funder IMF Bentham Limited, relates to guidance provided by Murray Goulburn in its Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) issued last July ahead of its $500 million capital raising.

Those forecasts have since been slashed.

Slater and Gordon Senior class action lawyer Tim Finney said in a statement that the firm would investigate whether Murray Goulburn has misled the market.

It comes as the Australian Securities and Investments Commisison is believed to have circumstances surrounding the downgrade and the issue of the PDS “on its radar.”

“Our initial investigations have identified inconsistencies between Murray Goulburn’s statements to the market regarding its likely profits in the 2016 financial year, and the factors that would affect its performance,’’ Mr Finney said.

“Yesterday’s downgrade was of such a scale that it cannot be explained by the excuses that have so far been provided. We are investigating whether the true cause of Murray Goulburn’s downgrade was an aggressively optimistic profit forecast – built into its Product Disclosure Statement – that the company was simply never going to achieve.”