On April 3, 2025, the Honorable Lewis A. Kaplan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York appointed Berman Tabacco as sole Lead Counsel in the securities class action lawsuit against Integral Ad Science Holding Corp. (“IAS” or the “Company”) certain of its executive officers and a controlling shareholder. Judge Kaplan appointed the firm’s client, Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System as Lead Plaintiff. The initial complaint alleges causes of action on behalf of all persons who acquired the common stock of IAS during the period from March 2, 2023 through February 27, 2024 (the “Class Period”).
IAS is a global software company specializing in digital advertising. IAS offers a suite of digital ad verification and optimization solutions, which help advertisers and publishers optimize their ad spend and better measure consumer engagement. The ad verification and measurement industry is dominated by IAS and its main competitor DoubleVerify, Inc. Indeed, a Truist Securities analyst has referred to this as a “virtual duopoly.” As such, concerns over a potential pricing war with DoubleVerify have led the Company to reassure investors about its ability to defend pricing.
As alleged, IAS repeatedly touted demand for its products and revenue growth, its ability to maintain pricing power, and its ability to close large deals with major customers. These statements were allegedly false and misleading because, unbeknownst to investors, the Company had been engaging in an escalating pricing war with its main competitor. Indeed, management reported this adverse change in the competitive landscape to IAS’s Board of Directors on numerous occasions throughout the Class Period but concealed this adverse information from the public. Instead, the Company’s controlling shareholder, Defendant Vista Equity Partners Management, LLC (“Vista”), and two senior managers were afforded an opportunity to dump $450 million of IAS common stock at inflated stock prices on unsuspecting investors.
On February 27, 2024, IAS stunned the market when it reported lackluster financial results for the fourth quarter (“Q4”) 2023, as well as the Company’s 2024 financial outlook missing analyst estimates. The Company revealed that this was the result of competitive pricing pressures forcing IAS to cut prices to close deals. This news caused IAS shares collapsed by 41%, wiping out over $1 billion in shareholder value.
“We are grateful for the Court’s prompt leadership order and look forward to litigating this matter on behalf of our client and the class,” commented Boston Partner Patrick T. Egan.
The case is Oklahoma Firefighters Pension & Ret. Sys. v Integral Ad Science Holding Corp., et al., Case No. 1:24-cv-847 (S.D.N.Y). The litigation team includes Patrick T. Egan, Steven Buttacavoli, Christina Fitzgerald and Sol Wanstok.