Eifrig wie unsere chinesischen Freunde beim Kopieren sind, haben sie den alten Trick aufgeblasener Gewinne zum IPO auch schon perfekt imitiert.
China dotcom + Internethype war auch einfach zu verlockend. Da konnten die doch gar nicht anders.
http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuoteCompanyNewsArticle.jhtm…
Lawsuit against 51Job charges it misled investors
Mon Jan 24, 2005 08:28 PM ET
By Arindam Nag
NEW YORK, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Internet company 51Job Inc. (JOBS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) was sued on Monday for the second time in less than a week for allegedly misleading shareholders, sending its shares down nearly 14 percent on the Nasdaq.
The law firm Schatz & Nobel said in a statement that it filed suit against the Shanghai company in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of investors who bought its stock between November 4, 2004 and January 14.
Law firm Schiffrin & Barroway said in a statement last Friday it also sued the company in the same federal court for allegedly misleading investors.
Both suits seek class action status, which, if granted by the court, would allow certain 51Job investors to sue the company as a group.
Schatz & Nobel said in its statement that 51Job, which runs print and online services for job seekers and recruiters in China, violated U.S. securities laws by "issuing false or misleading public statements."
The law firm said in its statement the company, among other things, "improperly recognized recruitment advertising revenues" in the third quarter of 2004.
On Jan. 18, 51Job slashed its earnings forecast due to slow business in December and said it was revising downwards its third quarter revenues by between $2 million and $3 million and adding that amount to the fourth quarter. Its shares fell as much as 37 percent.
The company had one of the best-performing initial public offerings last year, and its American Depositary Shares rose from their September 2004 IPO price of $14 to more than $50 by year-end. On Monday they closed at $20.75.
51Job issued a statement on Monday responding to Friday`s lawsuit, saying it was aware of the suit but could not comment as it had not yet received a copy. 51Job was not immediately available to comment later on Monday after the Schatz & Nobel announcement.
ANOTHER CHINESE COMPANY SUED
Last February, China Life Insurance Co. Ltd. (LFC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) (2628.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) came under scrutiny by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after the company said Chinese state auditors had uncovered accounting irregularities at its predecessor company.
Following news of the irregularities, shares in China Life and other major Chinese firms traded in the United States fell heavily.
China Life, whose $3.5 billion IPO was the largest for 2003, was sued last year, also in the Southern District of New York, by law firm Strauss & Troy on behalf of investors. That suit accused China Life of not disclosing to investors at the time of its IPO that Chinese authorities were conducting a probe into alleged financial fraud.
Chang Qiu, an analyst with Forun Technology Research and Advisory, who covers Chinese Internet companies traded in the United States, said: "The earlier bunch of Chinese companies in comparison did a better job in terms of investor relations," referring to Netease.com (NTES.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , Sohu.com Inc. (SOHU.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and Sina Corp. (SINA.O: Quote, Profile, Research) .