Berman Tabacco Files First Securities Class Action Lawsuit Against Sterling Bancorp, Inc. (Southfield, MI) (SBT) and Continues Investigation of the Advantage Loan Program

SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / March 9, 2020 / On February 26, 2020, Berman Tabacco, a national law firm representing investors, filed the first class action lawsuit for violations of the federal securities laws against Sterling Bancorp, Inc. ("Sterling" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:SBT), certain of its current and former officers and directors, and the underwriters for the Company's initial public offering ("IPO") on behalf of investors who purchased or otherwise acquired Sterling common stock from November 17, 2017 through and including December 8, 2019 (the "Class Period") and investors who purchased or otherwise acquired Sterling common stock in or traceable to the Company's IPO. You may find more information about the case here: https://www.bermantabacco.com/case/sterling/.

Berman Tabacco filed this action in the Eastern District of Michigan on behalf of its client, Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System. The case is captioned Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System v. Sterling Bancorp, Inc, et al., No. 2:20-cv-10490. A copy of the complaint is available on the firm's website [here].

Sterling, headquartered in Southfield, Michigan, is the unitary thrift holding company of Sterling Bank and Trust. The Company specializes in residential mortgages but offers a broad suite of products to the residential and commercial markets as well as retail banking services. Throughout the Class Period, the Company's largest lending product was its Advantage Loan Program, constituting the majority of the Company's loans.

On December 9, 2019, the Company disclosed that it "voluntarily and temporarily suspended its Advantage Loan program in connection with an ongoing internal review of the program's documentation." On that same day, shares of Sterling common stock fell $2.16 per share to close at $7.29 per share, a decline of nearly 23%.

The complaint filed in this class action alleges that, throughout the Class Period, defendants made untrue statements of material fact and omitted other facts necessary to make the statements not misleading and failed to disclose material facts concerning, inter alia, the Company's loan underwriting, risk management and internal controls, including repeatedly touting its strict underwriting, asset quality and the Advantage Loan Program.

On March 6, 2020, after the market closed, the Company filed a Form 8-K with the SEC announcing (i) that it "expects to file a Notification of Late Filing on Form 12b-25 disclosing that the Company will be unable to file its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019"; (ii) that "[p]reliminary results from the Special Committee's internal review indicate that certain employees engaged in misconduct in connection with the origination of [Advantage Loan Program] loans, including with respect to income verification and requirements, reliance on third parties, and related documentation"; (iii) that "[i]n connection with the internal review, a significant number of employees either have been terminated, including the Senior Vice President with primary responsibility for, among other things, oversight of the Advantage Loan Program in California, or have resigned"; (iv) that "the Company no longer intends to resume the Advantage Loan Program"; (v) that the Company is "under formal investigation by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency"; (vi) that the Company "received grand jury subpoenas from the United States Department of Justice (the "DOJ') requesting the production of documents and information in connection with an investigation that appears to be focused on the Bank's residential lending practices and related issues"; and (vii) that "the Company has determined to cease paying quarterly shareholder dividends for at least the near term."

If you wish to serve as Lead Plaintiff for the Class, you must file a motion with the Court no later than Monday, April 27, 2020. Any member of the proposed Class may move the Court to serve as Lead Plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain a member of the proposed Class.

If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact Berman Tabacco Attorneys A. Chowning Poppler or Nicole A. Maruzzi at [phone] or via email at [e-mail] or [e-mail].

Berman Tabacco is a national law firm representing institutions and individuals in lawsuits seeking to recoup losses caused by violations of securities and antitrust laws. The firm has lawyers in Boston, Massachusetts and San Francisco, California. More information about the firm can be found on the firm's website at www.bermantabacco.com.

This notice may constitute attorney advertising.

Contacts

A. Chowning Poppler
[e-mail]
[phone]

Nicole A. Maruzzi
[e-mail]
[phone]

SOURCE: Berman Tabacco

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