Farmland Partners Files Lawsuit Against Rota Fortunae and Co-Conspirators for "Short and Distort" Attack

DENVER, July 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Farmland Partners Inc. (NYSE: FPI) ("FPI," and "Company"), today announced that it has filed a lawsuit in District Court, Denver County, Colorado against "Rota Fortunae" (a pseudonym), and numerous other individuals and entities who worked with or for Rota Fortunae (collectively, "Wheel of Fortune") in conducting a "short and distort" scheme to profit from the precipitous decline in the Company's stock price resulting from Wheel of Fortune's false and misleading internet posting on Seeking Alpha. The lawsuit alleges Wheel of Fortune used Seeking Alpha to disseminate material false, misleading, and defamatory information about FPI and its management, and is engaging in other misconduct that has harmed the Company and its stockholders. A copy of the complaint will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company's website once it is available.

The complaint alleges that the defendants accumulated substantial short positions in FPI stock in advance of the release of an intentionally false and misleading posting on Seeking Alpha that was designed to cause panicked selling among FPI's stockholders and generate ill-gotten profits at the expense of the Company and its stockholders. FPI seeks damages and injunctive relief for defamation, defamation by libel per se, disparagement, intentional interference with prospective business relations, unjust enrichment, deceptive trade practices and civil conspiracy.

The filing of this lawsuit marks another important step in FPI's vigorous defense of itself and the Company's stakeholders, and follows the Company's July 11 and July 17, 2018, press releases rebutting false and misleading claims about the Company.

The Company has retained Morrison & Foerster LLP, to investigate and pursue all available legal remedies against those responsible for these blatant attempts at market manipulation. Counsel is continuing its investigation.

About Farmland Partners Inc.

Farmland Partners Inc. is an internally managed real estate company that owns and seeks to acquire high-quality North American farmland and makes loans to farmers secured by farm real estate. As of the date of this release, the Company owns or has under contract over 165,000 acres in 17 states, including Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Virginia. We have approximately 30 crop types and over 100 tenants. The Company elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust, or REIT, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, commencing with the taxable year ended December 31, 2014.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "should," "could," "would," "predicts," "potential," "continue," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" or similar expressions or their negatives, as well as statements in future tense. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, such forward-looking statements are not predictions of future events or guarantees of future performance and our actual results could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Some factors that might cause such a difference include the following: the litigation discussed in this press release and related matters, general volatility of the capital markets and the market price of the Company's common stock or Series B participating preferred stock, changes in the Company's business strategy, availability, terms and deployment of capital, the Company's ability to refinance existing indebtedness at or prior to maturity on favorable terms, or at all, availability of qualified personnel, changes in the Company's industry, interest rates or the general economy, adverse developments related to crop yields or crop prices, the degree and nature of the Company's competition, the timing, price or amount of repurchases, if any, under the Company's share repurchase program, the ability to consummate acquisitions under contract and the other factors described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Any forward-looking information presented herein is made only as of the date of this press release, and we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or otherwise.

SOURCE Farmland Partners Inc.

Related Links

http://www.farmlandpartners.com