Nikola Corporation

Block & Leviton LLP announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of shareholders against Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) and certain of its executives for securities fraud.

Before the markets opened on September 10, 2020,analyst Hindenburg Research published a scathing report calling Nikola “an intricate fraud built on dozens of lies.” Hindenburg wrote that it “gathered extensive evidence—including recorded phone calls, text messages, private emails and behind-the-scenes photographs—detailing dozens of false statements by Nikola Founder Trevor Milton. We have never seen this level of deception a public company, especially of this size.” Hindenburg asserts that Nikola has misled investors concerning, among other things, its battery and hydrogen fuel cell claims, as well as its purported “multi-billion dollar order book,” which Hindenburg asserts is “filled with fluff.” Nikola shares fell approximately 24% by the close of the markets on September 11, 2020.

Then on September 14, 2020, Bloomberg News reported that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was examining Nikola Corporation to assess the merits of Hindenburg’s September 10, 2020 report. Next, on September 15, 2020, the Wall Street Journal reported that the United States Department of Justice was also investigating whether Nikola may have misled investors. Shares of Nikola common stock continued to fall precipitously.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, located at the Sandra Day O’Connor United States Courthouse, 401 W. Washington St., Suite 130, SPC 1, Phoenix, AZ 85003. The case is captioned Wojichowski v. Nikola Corp., et al., No. CV-20-01819-PHX-DLR and has been assigned to Judge Douglas L. Rayes. The lawsuit alleges a class period of June 4, 2020 to September 9, 2020. A related suit alleges a class period of March 3, 2020 to September 15, 2020. The deadline to move the Court to be appointed lead plaintiff is November 16, 2020.