- Shares in AMA Group (AMA) have fallen sharply amid an update on CEO Andrew Hopkins
- In September 2020, the company received a protected disclosure from an employee, containing allegations which prompted an independent forensic investigation
- Yesterday, Andrew applied to the Federal Court of Australia, claiming he is being oppressed as a minority shareholder
- As such, the Court has made a temporary order that the company cannot dismiss Andrew from employment before an additional hearing
- AMA Group is down 18.92 per cent and trading at $0.60 per share
Shares in AMA Group (AMA) have fallen sharply amid an update on CEO Andrew Hopkins.
In September 2020, the auto repair group received a protected disclosure from one of its employees. The disclosure contained allegations which prompted the company to engage advisory and restructuring firm, McGrath Nicol.
AMA Group did not divulge this information to the market in September, choosing instead to wait until an investigation into the issue was completed. McGrath Nicol has since conducted and recently completed an independent forensic investigation into the allegations made against Andrew.
While the nature of the accusations has been left unclear, the company’s CEO has been quick to respond to them.
Yesterday, on January 26, Andrew made an application to the Federal Court of Australia. In his application, he claimed that he is being oppressed as a minority shareholder.
As such, the Court has made a temporary order that AMA Group may not dismiss Andrew from his employment before a further hearing. The date for this additional hearing will be set for some time next week.
In an announcement to the market, AMA Group’s board of directors was reluctant to elaborate on the matter.
“The company is defending the legal proceedings, and will not comment further on the matter as it is before the courts,” the board wrote.
“The board would like to take this opportunity to reiterate that the company’s three core business units continue to rebound well from the disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic under the capable leadership of the respective division heads and that the company will report its first-half results to the market next month,” the board added.
AMA Group is down 18.92 per cent and trading at $0.60 per share at 3:06 pm AEDT.