Anderson v. Spirit AeroSystems Holdings

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Spirit AeroSystems, Inc. agreed to supply parts for three types of aircraft manufactured by Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation and The Boeing Company. For these aircraft, Spirit managed production of the parts through three projects. Each project encountered production delays and cost overruns, and Spirit periodically reported to the public about the projects’ progress. In these reports, Spirit acknowledged risks but expressed confidence about its ability to meet production deadlines and ultimately break even on the projects. Eventually, however, Spirit announced that it expected to lose hundreds of millions of dollars on the three projects. Spirit’s stock price fell roughly 30 percent following the announcement. The plaintiffs brought this action on behalf of a class of individuals and organizations that had owned or obtained Spirit stock between November 3, 2011, and October 24, 2012. The named defendants were Spirit and four of its executives, whom plaintiffs alleged misrepresented and failed to disclose the projects' cost overruns and production delays, violated section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the Securities and Exchange Commission's Rule 10b-5. The trial court granted defendants' motion to dismiss, concluding in part that plaintiffs failed to allege facts showing scienter. Finding no reversible error in the trial court's order, the Tenth Circuit affirmed. View "Anderson v. Spirit AeroSystems Holdings" on Justia Law