WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Finkelstein, Thompson & Loughran today announced that it has commenced an investigation of Meade Instruments Corp. ("Meade" or the "Company") for potential violations of federal securities laws related to the backdating of stock options.
On May 22, 2006, the Wall Street Journal reported that Meade's founder, John C. Diebel, received a series of suspiciously well-timed option grants between 1998 and 2002. According to the Journal, the likelihood of a pattern this favorable was approximately one in 800,000. Thereafter, on June 13, the Company disclosed that it had received an informal inquiry from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Finally, on August 29, the Company issued a press release announcing that its financial statements for the years ended February 28 or 29, 2001 through 2005, as well as statements for the quarters ended May 31, 2005, August 31, 2005, and November 30, 2005, should no longer be relied upon due to accounting misstatements relating to stock option grants.
The market reacted sharply to this news, with Meade's share price dropping from a close of $2.79 on June 13, 2006 to a low of $2.10 on July 28, 2006 -- a drop of 25%.
If you are a Meade investor and wish to discuss this announcement or have information relevant to the investigation, please contact Finkelstein, Thompson & Loughran's Washington, DC office at (877) 337-1050, or by email at
