Understanding Your Rights: The Perrigo Infant Formula Securities Litigation

Understanding Your Potential Claim

If you purchased shares of Perrigo Company (PRGO) between late February 2023 and early November 2025, you may be part of a securities fraud class action now moving through federal court. The lawsuit centers on allegations that company leadership misled shareholders about serious operational problems at an infant formula manufacturing facility acquired from Nestlé (NSRGF).

Class membership is generally available to anyone who bought Perrigo stock during the relevant timeframe and suffered financial losses as a result. However, certain individuals cannot participate: the defendants themselves, company officers and directors serving during the relevant period, their immediate family members, and any entities where defendants held controlling stakes. Also excluded are legal representatives, heirs, successors, or assigns of these excluded parties.

Determining whether your specific investment qualifies requires examining your purchase dates, the prices you paid, whether you still hold the shares or have sold them, and the resulting gain or loss. Documentation of these transactions will become critical as the case progresses.

The Perrigo Situation: What Investors Need to Know

Perrigo operates across multiple continents, producing over-the-counter healthcare and wellness products. The company’s portfolio ranges from pain relief medications to oral care items, with infant formula representing a strategic expansion into the nutrition sector through its North America operations.

When Perrigo acquired the infant formula business from Nestlé, the transaction brought production facilities, brand names including Good Start, and an entry point into a highly regulated market segment. By fiscal year 2024, the Nutrition category accounted for roughly 17 percent of the company’s North American sales – a meaningful contributor to overall financial performance.

The infant formula industry operates under stringent Food and Drug Administration oversight, requiring manufacturers to maintain rigorous quality controls, documentation, and facility standards. These regulatory requirements create both operational demands and significant legal exposure if compliance falters.

The Alleged Misrepresentation Pattern

According to the complaint filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Perrigo’s public statements during 2023 painted an optimistic picture of the company’s trajectory. In late February 2023, company announcements highlighted net sales reaching $4.5 billion for the prior fiscal year, accompanied by expanding gross profit margins. The annual 10-K filing assured investors that management was actively monitoring manufacturing processes to maintain compliance with FDA infant formula regulations.

By May 2023, then-Chief Executive Officer Murray Kessler described strategic initiatives as advancing successfully. He pointed to supply chain programs delivering productivity gains and characterized the integration of the acquired assets, including the Gateway production facility and Good Start product lines, as proceeding on schedule with synergies actually exceeding initial projections.

The lawsuit alleges these reassurances concealed a troubling reality. Plaintiffs contend that the infant formula operation suffered from chronic underinvestment in essential maintenance and equipment upgrades prior to Perrigo’s acquisition. Furthermore, the complaint asserts that significant manufacturing shortcomings existed at the facility, requiring far more extensive capital expenditures and operational spending than company leadership disclosed to the investing public.

As a consequence of these alleged omissions, investors claim that Perrigo’s reported financial metrics, including earnings per share and cash flow figures, reflected an artificially inflated view of company performance. The positive characterizations of operational progress and business prospects allegedly lacked adequate factual support, given the underlying facility conditions.

How the Market Learned the Truth

The first major disclosure arrived in late February 2024, when Perrigo reported results for fiscal year 2023. Management revealed that the company would incur between $35 million and $45 million in additional cash costs specifically for remediation work addressing production and facility issues within the infant formula business. Executives acknowledged facing “headwinds” from actions necessary to strengthen the operation, warning that these challenges would negatively affect 2024 performance. Reported earnings per share had declined by half compared to the previous year, with management directly linking the drop to remediation activities.

Three months later, in early May 2024, Perrigo provided further details during its quarterly earnings announcement. Nutrition category net sales totaled just $91 million, representing a 34.5% decrease. Management attributed the sharp decline primarily to reduced shipment volumes as the company worked through its plant remediation plans. Gross margin for the segment also deteriorated significantly, with infant formula issues creating a negative 280 basis point impact. Company officials noted they had completed planned large-scale production line resets during the period.

The problems persisted into summer 2025. When Perrigo reported results in early August, adjusted gross profit had fallen by $30 million, a nearly 7 percent decline, with production variability in the infant formula operation cited as a contributing factor. Chief Financial Officer Eduardo Bezerra disclosed that manufacturing difficulties had forced the company to scrap approximately $11 million worth of inventory that failed to meet quality standards.

The most dramatic disclosure came in early November 2025. Perrigo announced it had initiated a strategic review of the entire infant formula business line, describing it as less aligned with core company strategy than previously indicated. Management revealed they were reassessing a previously announced $240 million capital investment earmarked for the operation. Simultaneously, the company reduced its full-year fiscal 2025 financial guidance, citing challenging dynamics within the infant formula industry broadly.

Quantifying the Damage: Stock Price Declines

Financial markets reacted severely to each successive disclosure. On February 27, 2024, when the company first revealed substantial remediation costs and warned of performance headwinds, Perrigo shares dropped $4.87, closing at $27.30, a decline of more than 15% on trading volume significantly above normal levels.

The May 7, 2024 announcement of steep Nutrition segment sales declines and gross margin compression triggered another sharp selloff. The stock fell $3.28, or nearly 10 percent, finishing the session at $30.15 amid heavy trading activity.

August 6, 2025, brought additional losses when investors learned about production variability and the $11 million inventory write-off. Shares declined $3.01, an 11.3$ drop, to close at $23.61.

The most severe single-day impact occurred on November 5, 2025, following the pre-market announcement of the strategic review, investment reassessment, and reduced outlook. Perrigo stock plummeted $5.09, or more than 25%, ending at $15.10 on exceptionally high volume. The cumulative effect of these declines left many investors holding positions worth substantially less than their purchase prices.

Your Action Timeline and Next Steps

Federal securities class actions follow a structured legal process with specific deadlines. The first critical date for Perrigo investors is January 16, 2026, the deadline for any class member to submit a motion seeking appointment as lead plaintiff.

The lead plaintiff role carries significant responsibility. This individual or entity serves as the primary representative for all class members, working with counsel to direct the litigation strategy and make key decisions about settlement or trial. Courts typically appoint the lead plaintiff based on factors including the size of financial losses and the adequacy of representation they can provide to the entire class.

Following the lead plaintiff appointment, the court will consider several procedural matters. Class certification represents a key milestone, where the judge determines whether the case can proceed as a class action or whether individual lawsuits would be more appropriate. Defendants will also file a motion to dismiss, arguing that the complaint fails to state a valid legal claim. The court’s rulings on these motions will shape the remainder of the litigation.

You face several participation options. You can actively seek an appointment as lead plaintiff if you believe your losses and circumstances make you well-suited for the role. Alternatively, you can remain a passive class member, allowing the lead plaintiff and appointed counsel to pursue the case on your behalf. If you prefer, you can opt out of the class entirely and pursue an individual claim, though this approach requires separate legal counsel and bears its own costs and risks.

Documenting Your Investment and Losses

Proper documentation forms the foundation of any securities claim. You should gather all trade confirmations showing your purchases of Perrigo stock during the class period, which extends from February 27, 2023, through November 4, 2025. These records must reflect the purchase dates, number of shares, and prices paid.

If you sold any Perrigo shares during or after the class period, sale confirmations are equally important. The timing of your sales relative to the corrective disclosures affects loss calculation methodologies under securities law.

Account statements from your brokerage provide additional supporting evidence of your holdings and transaction history. Tax records, including Schedule D attachments and 1099-B forms, offer another source of purchase and sale documentation that may prove valuable.

Calculate the difference between your purchase price and either your sale price (if you’ve sold) or the stock’s value after the final corrective disclosure (if you still hold shares). This calculation provides a preliminary estimate of your economic loss, though formal damage calculations in securities cases involve more sophisticated methodologies that account for market-wide movements and other factors.

Preserve all of this documentation carefully. As the case advances toward potential settlement or trial, you may need to provide proof of your transactions and losses. Missing or incomplete records can complicate or even jeopardize your ability to recover compensation.

Key Case Information at a Glance

The lawsuit bears the caption Tanner French v. Perrigo Company plc et al and has been assigned case number 1:25-cv-09596 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Attorneys filed the complaint on November 17, 2025.

Named as defendants are Perrigo Company plc itself, current Chief Executive Officer Patrick Lockwood-Taylor, former Chief Executive Officer Murray Kessler, and Chief Financial Officer Eduardo Bezerra. These individuals held positions of significant authority during the class period and allegedly participated in or were responsible for the challenged statements and omissions.

The class period spans from February 27, 2023 through November 4, 2025, inclusive. Anyone who purchased or acquired Perrigo securities during this timeframe and suffered damages may potentially qualify for class membership, subject to the exclusions noted earlier.

Court proceedings will unfold over the coming months and potentially years. Securities class actions typically involve extensive document discovery, depositions of company officials, expert witness testimony on financial and industry matters, and multiple rounds of motion practice before reaching resolution through settlement or trial.

Important Legal Considerations

This article provides general information about pending litigation and should not be construed as legal advice tailored to your individual circumstances. Securities law involves complex procedural rules, statute of limitations considerations, and damage calculation methodologies that require professional analysis.

The outcome of any lawsuit remains inherently uncertain. Class action securities cases face high legal standards, including requirements to plead fraud with particularity and to demonstrate that alleged misstatements were material to reasonable investors. Defendants vigorously contest these cases, and many do not survive motions to dismiss. Even cases that do proceed may settle for amounts that provide only partial recovery of investor losses, and trials can result in defense verdicts.

If you believe you may have suffered losses from Perrigo investments during the class period, consulting with an attorney experienced in securities litigation is advisable. Qualified counsel can review your specific transaction history, assess the strength of potential claims, explain your options, and guide you through the decision-making process regarding participation in the class action or pursuit of individual claims.

The lead plaintiff appointment deadline of January 16, 2026 is firm. Missing this date will not prevent you from remaining a class member, but it will eliminate any opportunity to seek a leadership role in directing the litigation. Investors with substantial losses who are considering seeking appointment as lead plaintiff should consult counsel well before this deadline to allow adequate time for preparation and filing of the required motion.