Estee Lauder Faces Securities Fraud Suit After District Court Denies Motion To Dismiss

The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc. will face a securities fraud lawsuit after a federal judge in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York denied the company’s motion to dismiss the suit, saying shareholder plaintiffs created a “compelling inference” that company executives concealed the firm’s temporary reliance on a gray market retail revenue stream.

In an opinion and order filed 31 March, US District Judge Arun Subramanian said the plaintiffs were able to demonstrate the company’s forward looking statements were “present-day half-truths” and that...