Anywhere hit with 3 lawsuits related to Compass merger
The complaints claim Anywhere provided deficient financial disclosures in merger documents; Compass responded with new details in an effort to prevent delays.
At least three individuals are suing Anywhere Real Estate in conjunction with the proposed Compass-Anywhere merger, according to an 8-K form filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Dec. 29.
Who filed the lawsuits? The SEC report indicated that three complaints had been filed in two courts: Cases referred to as McDaniels and Marino were filed with the Supreme Court of the State of New York, and another referred to as Drulias was filed with the Superior Court of New Jersey.
All three lawsuits were brought by "purported Anywhere stockholders," according to the 8-K.
What are the claims? The complaints allege that Anywhere failed to provide complete or accurate disclosures related to the merger in the joint proxy statement/prospectus submitted earlier this month.
Real Estate News is attempting to access the court filings and will provide more details once those documents have been obtained.
Additional disclosures publicized: Both Compass and Anywhere maintain that the claims are without merit, but the 8-K filing includes a supplement to the original proxy statement with additional disclosures "in order to avoid the risk of delay" to the merger, which is scheduled to be completed in the second half of 2026.
The new disclosures provide more details about how the cash flow analysis and the future share price analysis were calculated.
Other concerns about the deal: The $1.6 billion proposed acquisition of Anywhere by Compass would create the world's largest brokerage enterprise. The mega-deal has drawn the attention of two U.S. senators, who sent a letter to the Department of Justice earlier this month raising concerns about potential impacts to the industry and consumers.
And just last week, The Capitol Forum, an independent investigative outlet that focuses on how regulation impacts market competition, published a report suggesting the Compass-Anywhere merger could violate antitrust rules based on the companies' combined market share in several major metropolitan areas.