PTLA Portola Pharmaceuticals Inc

Saxena White P.A. has filed a securities fraud class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Portola” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: PTLA), and certain of its executive officers, (collectively, “Defendants”) on behalf of all persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Portola common stock between May 8, 2019 and January 9, 2020, inclusive (the “Class Period”). A previous securities fraud class action complaint filed against Portola asserted an abbreviated class period of November 5, 2019 through January 9, 2020. 

If you purchased Portola common stock during the Class Period and wish to apply to be lead plaintiff, a motion on your behalf must be filed with the Court by no later than March 16, 2020. You may contact David Kaplan (dkaplan@saxenawhite.com), an attorney and Director at Saxena White P.A., to discuss your rights regarding the appointment of lead plaintiff or your interest in the class action. You may also retain counsel of your choice and need not take any action at this time to be a class member.

Portola is a biopharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes treatments for thrombosis and other hematologic diseases. Its lead product is Andexxa, marketed as Ondexxya in Europe.  Andexxa is for patients treated with rivaroxaban or apixaban, when anticoagulation needs to be reversed due to life-threatening or uncontrolled bleeding. 

The Complaint asserts claims against Defendants for violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  As alleged in the Complaint, during the Class Period, the Company misleadingly touted Andexxa’s revenues and future prospects – calling it one of the most successful drug launches in history and hailing the Company’s purportedly exceptional execution on the Andexxa launch as the catalyst for continued robust revenue growth.  However, the Company failed to warn investors of significant risks and trends that had already materialized and were known to Defendants.  While Portola emphasized “strong demand for Andexxa,” “deepening utilization within existing accounts” at hospitals, and broad usage for the drug in a variety of medical situations, in reality, the opposite was true.  As the Company knew but concealed from investors, the “strong demand” for Andexxa simply did not exist.  Among other things, Andexxa’s astronomically high wholesale price of up to $49,500 per dose forced many of Portola’s clients to perform utilization reviews of Andexxa’s cost effectiveness as a treatment.  Consequently, a number of clients had drastically “curtailed use of Andexxa following drug utilization reviews.”  This caused Andexxa’s quarterly sales growth to Tier 1 hospitals, Portola’s most important accounts, to collapse to zero or “flat.”

The truth emerged on January 9, 2020, when Portola announced preliminary net revenues of $28 million for the fourth quarter of 2019, which missed analysts’ consensus estimates of $41 million by more than 30%.  Portola executives were forced to admit that Andexxa demand was falling dramatically due to “typical” hospital utilization reviews and the short shelf life of a version of the product.  In addition, the Company disclosed that it was taking a substantial charge of $5 million for unused and returned Andexxa product previously recognized as revenue and incorporated into Portola’s revenue growth numbers, largely stemming from selling a version of Andexxa with an ultra-low shelf life of as little as six months.  On this news, the Company’s share price plummeted by $9.98, or approximately 40%, to close at $14.76 per share on January 10, 2020. 

You may obtain a copy of the Complaint and inquire about actively joining the class action at www.saxenawhite.com.

Saxena White P.A., with offices in Florida, New York, and California, concentrates its practice on prosecuting securities fraud and complex class actions on behalf of institutions and individuals. Currently serving as lead counsel in numerous securities fraud class actions nationwide, the firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of injured investors and is active in major litigation pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States.

CONTACT INFORMATIONDavid Kaplan, Esq.dkaplan@saxenawhite.com Saxena White P.A.12750 High Bluff Drive, Suite 475San Diego, CA 92130Tel: (858) 987-0860 Fax: (858) 369-0096www.saxenawhite.com