NMC Health (NMC) is preparing to take legal action after a short-selling attack on the firm wiped £2.6billion off its value, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Shares in NMC Health halved after American short-seller Muddy Waters published a damning report that raised red flags over NMC Health’s accounting practices, claiming its finances pointed to possible ‘fraudulent asset values and the theft of company assets’. A source close to the company revealed it has engaged two major law firms to advise on filing a possible lawsuit to repair its reputation. The source said: ‘NMC Health is considering all potential legal remedies, both civil and criminal.’ The legal claim will focus on actions taken by third parties to ‘mislead the market and manipulate the share price’, according to a statement to the stock exchange. Muddy Waters, run by the notorious bear raider Carson Block, and a group of hedge funds based in the US, Switzerland and London, cashed in from the share price fall because they were ‘shorting’ the shares. Funds that have built up short positions in NMC include AQR Capital, PSquared, Gladstone Capital Management and Portsea. The NMC insider said the crash triggered by Muddy Waters’ report on December 17 has created a ‘material loss’ for NMC’s pension fund backers and institutional investors, which include BlackRock and Legal & General.
MIDAS SHARE TIPS: A nice pint? Flat white? Property? has got the lot. Midas verdict: Some observers may find Barkby hard to understand, but Dickson is highly driven, and determined to turn it into a sizeable, prosperous and dividend-paying business. At 29p, the shares could provide an exciting ride for the adventurous investor. Dickson is also highly incentivised to make this venture work, as he and his family own more than 60 per cent of the stock.
