FRANKFURT--A German court Wednesday rejected two claims over
Porsche Automobil Holding SE's (PAH3.XE) ill-fated attempt to take
over much-larger Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE).
One of the rejected claims was for 3.11 million euro ($4.05
million) by an investor and another by an investment company for
the amount of EUR1.57 million.
The plaintiffs alleged that Porsche made a misleading press
statement in March 2008 regarding its true intentions in the
matter, and thereby manipulated the VW share price.
Several institutional investors in Germany and the U.S. have
filed lawsuits seeking damage claims worth billions of euros in
total for alleged market manipulation during the takeover attempt.
Porsche's move backfired in 2009 when credit markets dried up
during the financial crisis, which triggered huge swings in VW
stock and led to the departure of Porsche's previous
management.
In June, Porsche said it wants to complete the sale of its
remaining 50.1% stake in its sports-car business to Volkswagen as
quickly as possible, after legal obstacles forced the two to
abandon a full-fledged merger last year. Porsche agreed to sell a
49.9% stake in its sports-car unit to Volkswagen in August 2009,
and Volkswagen is expected to acquire the remainder for about
EUR4.5 billion
Write to Nicky Redl at nicky.redl@dowjones.com
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