Big Lots Stock Manipulation Suit Revived to Revisit Standing

An Ohio state trial judge who tossed a lawsuit filed by Big Lots Stores Inc. shareholders accusing activist investors of violating a rarely-used stock price manipulation law wrongly did so without deciding whether the shareholders could sue, an appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The Ohio Court of Appeals, 10th District sent the case—which says Ancora Holdings Inc. and Macellum Capital Management LP committed “greenmailing"—back to the Franklin County Common Pleas Court to decide the standing issue. Greenmailing is when buyers acquire a large amount of stock and threaten a company’s takeover unless the company buys the stock back at an inflated ...