NEW YORK, March 7, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Pomerantz Haudek Block Grossman & Gross LLP (www.pomerantzlaw.com) reminds investors that the Lead Plaintiff deadline in the class action lawsuit against OfficeMax, Inc. (NYSE:OMX) is March 14, 2005. The Pomerantz Firm filed a class action lawsuit on February 18, 2005 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division, against OfficeMax Inc. ("OfficeMax" or the "Company") and certain of its executive officers and directors, for violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The class period in the case is January 22, 2004 to January 11, 2005.
The complaint alleges that during the class period, defendants made materially false and misleading statements concerning the Company's operations and financial performance. Each of the defendants, however, knew or recklessly disregarded, but concealed from the investing public, the true facts. The true facts include (i) for a period of two years, the Company fraudulently booked millions of dollars as legitimate sales; (ii) the Company was using -- and manipulating its use of -- "vendor allowances" (monies paid by suppliers for promotions, prime shelf space, discounts and rebates) in order to manipulate the Company's earnings and timing of revenue recognition; (iii) the Company's fourth quarter 2004 results and those beyond were being eroded by the Company's internal investigation costs and the halting of the Company's abusive vendor allowance scheme; (iv) the Company lacked the necessary internal controls to insure all revenue reported complied with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"); and (v) the Company had entered into a long term-paper supply contract with Boise Cascade, LLC -- the Company's timber successor company -- which, unbeknownst to investors, was not commensurate with the market rate.
As a result of defendants' false statements, OfficeMax's stock price traded at inflated levels during the Class Period, increasing to as high as $32.52 on December 16, 2004, whereby the Company's top officers and directors arranged to sell nearly $1.5 billion worth of the Company's notes.
OfficeMax, formerly Boise Cascade Corporation ("Boise"), is a multinational contract and retail distributor of office supplies, paper, technology products and office furniture.
If you purchased the securities of OfficeMax Inc. or Boise Cascade Corp during the Class Period, you have until March 14, 2005 to ask the Court to appoint you as lead plaintiff for the Class. Lead plaintiffs must meet certain legal requirements. Shareholders outside the United States may also join the action, regardless of where they live or which exchange was used to purchase the securities. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, to discuss this action, or have any questions, please contact Teresa L. Webb (tlwebb@pomlaw.com) or Carolyn S. Moskowitz (csmoskowitz@pomlaw.com) of the Pomerantz Firm at 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll free. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address and telephone number.
The Pomerantz Firm, which has offices in New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C., 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 50 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. For more information about the Firm, visit our web site at www.pomlaw.com.
More information on this and other class actions can be found on the Class Action Newsline at www.primezone.com/ca