GlobeNewswire Inc | Aug 20, 2020 04:40PM EDT

August 20, 2020

NEW YORK, Aug. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors ofProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil (UCO or the Company) (NYSE:UCO). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at newaction@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 7980.

The investigation concerns whether UCO and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

In early 2020, oil demand fell precipitously as governments imposed lockdowns and businesses halted operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, in early March 2020, Saudi Arabia and Russia launched an oil price war, increasing production and slashing export prices in a bid to increase the global market share of their domestic petrochemical enterprises. As excess oil supply increased and oil prices waned, the facilities available for storage in Cushing, Oklahoma approached capacity, ultimately causing a rare market dynamic known as super contango, in which the futures prices for oil substantially exceed the spot price. At the same time, retail investors began pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into UCO in an attempt to buy the dip, on the expectation that the price of oil would rebound as economies exited lockdown periods and the Russia/Saudi oil price war ended. Because of the nature of UCOs investment strategy, these converging factors caused UCO to suffer significant losses and undermined UCOs ability to meet its ostensible investment objective. Nevertheless, rather than fully disclose the known impacts and risks to UCO as a result of these threats, the Fund instead opted to conduct a massive offering of UCO shares, ultimately selling billions of dollars worth of UCO shares to the market. On March 6, 2020, the Fund announced a public offering of up to $5,123,657,025 in UCO shares via a Form S-3 Registration Statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the March Offering). After the March Offering, UCO quickly deteriorated, as the Fund suffered billions of dollars in losses and was forced to abandon its investment strategy. Through a series of investment overhauls, UCO was forced to transform from the passive ETF an actively-managed fund struggling to avoid a total implosion. In April and May 2020, UCO belatedly acknowledged the threats and adverse impacts that the Fund had been experiencing at the time of the March offering, but which they had failed to disclose to investors in a timely manner.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com.

CONTACT:Robert S. WilloughbyPomerantz LLPrswilloughby@pomlaw.com