According to the Complaint, MGP Ingredients, Inc. purports to be a leading producer and supplier of premium distilled spirits and specialty wheat protein and starch food ingredients. Distilled spirits include premium bourbon and rye whiskeys and grain neutral spirits, including vodka and gin. MGP is also a top producer of high-quality industrial alcohol for use in both food and non-food applications. On the food ingredients side of the business, MGP is the largest U.S. supplier of specialty wheat proteins and starches.

The Complaint alleges that during the Class Period, Defendants made false and misleading statements and/or failed to disclose adverse information concerning MGP’s business and financial condition. Specifically, the Complaint alleges Defendants failed to disclose that MGP had not completed any significant sales of its aged whiskey inventory, the Company had been unable to sell its aged whiskey at the price premium represented to investors, a glut of aged whiskey inventory and shifts in consumer behavior had lowered the value of the Company’s aged whiskey inventory and materially impaired its ability to negotiate significant sales on favorable contract terms, and as a consequence, Defendants’ full-year 2019 financial guidance lacked a reasonable basis and was materially misleading.