Following the market closure yesterday, Meta Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: MMAT) experienced a significant surge in its stock price. MMAT shares soared by 86.52% in after-hours trading, reaching $4.29, after a 3.14% rise during the regular session, closing at $2.30. This upward momentum is largely attributed to a recent press release concerning a business update.
Investigation Into Short Selling Practices
Meta Materials (MMAT) provided an update on its investigation into short selling, which commenced in June 2023. The initial press release from late June detailed the company’s preliminary analysis of potential naked short selling. To thoroughly examine trading patterns of the company’s common stock, Meta Materials engaged the services of Shareholder Intelligence Services, LLC, a reputable analytics firm.
In response to the findings, and maintaining a zero-tolerance stance on illegal naked short selling and other forms of stock manipulation, Meta Materials retained legal counsel from Christian Attar and Warshaw Burstein (“Lawyers”) to assess the validity of these claims. Since then, the Lawyers have conducted a comprehensive investigation and extensive due diligence.
Their findings indicate that Meta Materials has substantial claims of market manipulation against several entities. With this critical information, Meta Materials is now poised to collaborate with regulatory agencies and plans to initiate legal proceedings against culpable financial service firms in the forthcoming quarters.
Workforce Reduction And Strategic Alternatives
In a strategic decision to address liquidity challenges and secure additional financing, Meta Materials announced a significant workforce reduction of approximately 80% of its employees, to be completed in the next few weeks. This measure, though difficult, is deemed necessary to manage the company’s financial constraints.
Furthermore, Meta Materials is still investigating a number of strategic options, such as possible asset sales, obtaining further funding, and/or firm acquisitions. Despite these efforts, the outcome remains uncertain. Without an adequate influx of capital to sustain operations, Meta Materials faces the possibility of closing its facilities and entering bankruptcy proceedings.
