GlobeNewswire Inc | Oct 16, 2020 05:18PM EDT

October 16, 2020

NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lowey Dannenberg P.C., a preeminent law firm in obtaining redress for consumers and investors, has filed a federal securities class action in the Southern District of New York on behalf of its client and all similarly situated investors who purchased or otherwise acquired common stock of Evolus, Inc. (Evolus or the Company)(NASDAQ: EOLS) from February 1, 2019 to July 6, 2020, inclusive (the Class Period). The class action alleges violations of the federal securities laws.

Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, Evolus is a medical aesthetics company that develops, produces, and markets clinical neurotoxins for the treatment of aesthetic concerns. Evolus sole product is Jeuveau, a purified botulinum toxin used to improve the appearance of moderate to severe frown lines.

Evolus directly competes with Botox, which is manufactured by Allergan plc and Allergan Inc. (collectively, Allergan) and distributed by Medytox Inc. (Medytox). Botox has been the gold standard of the industry since its approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more than two decades ago. On January 30, 2019, Allergan and Medytox filed a complaint against Evolus in the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), accusing Evolus of having developed Jeuveau by using trade secrets stolen from Medytox.

The Complaint alleges that Evolus made false and misleading statements to the public throughout the Class Period and failed to disclose that: (1) the real source of botulinum toxin bacterial strain as well as the manufacturing processes used to develop Jeuveau originated with and were misappropriated from Medytox; (2) sufficient evidentiary support existed for the allegations that Evolus misappropriated certain trade secrets relating to the botulin toxin strain and the manufacturing processes for the development of Jeuveau; (3) as a result, Evolus faced a real threat of regulatory and/or court action, prohibiting the import, marketing, and sale of Jeuveau; (4) which in turn seriously threatened Evolus ability to commercialize Jeuveau in the United States and generate revenue; and (5) any revenues generated from the sale of Jeuveau were based on Evolus unlawful activities, including the misappropriation of trade secrets and secret manufacturing processes belonging to Allergan and Medytox.

On July 6, 2020, Judge David Shaw of the ITC issued a preliminary ruling, siding with Allergan and Medytox and recommending a 10-year ban on Jeuveau imports to the United States. On this news, Evolus shares fell from $37% over the course of two days, to close at $3.35 on July 8, 2020.

If you wish to serve as Lead Plaintiff for the Class, you must file a motion with the Court no later than December 15, 2020. Any member of the proposed Class may move to serve as the Lead Plaintiff through counsel of their choice.

If you have suffered a net loss from investment in Evolus common stock from February 1, 2019 to July 6, 2020, you may obtain additional information about this lawsuit and your ability to become a Lead Plaintiff, by contacting Christian Levis atclevis@lowey.comor by calling 914-733-7220 or Andrea Farah atafarah@lowey.comor by calling 914-733-7256.The class action is titled Malakouti v. Evolus, Inc., No. 1:20-cv-08647 (S.D.N.Y.).