Securities Fraud Class Action Filed on Behalf of Coty Inc. Investors; Lead Plaintiff Deadline May 22, 2026

Kirby McInerney LLP is urging investors who purchased Coty Inc. (“Coty”) (NYSE: COTY) securities to contact the firm to discuss potential rights in a securities fraud class action lawsuit. Investors who suffered losses on Coty investments must request appointment as lead plaintiff by May 22, 2026.

Allegations and timeline of the lawsuit

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of investors who purchased Coty securities during the period from November 5, 2025 through February 4, 2026 (inclusive), referred to as the “Class Period.” The complaint alleges that Coty made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose the true state of the company’s slowing growth in the beauty market.

Specifically, the lawsuit alleges that the Consumer Beauty market was underperforming, margins were compressed due to increased marketing investments, and there was slowing growth in Coty’s Prestige fragrance segment.

Company statements and alleged contradictions

The filing points to prepared remarks released on February 4, 2026 in connection with Coty’s second quarter earnings for fiscal year 2026. In those remarks, the company stated that performance versus the market had been inconsistent, including that in Prestige fragrances sell-out was “flattish,” underperforming the market by several points in the critical fragrance category. For Consumer Beauty, Coty said it continued to see a “large gap” in sell-out performance relative to U.S. mass cosmetics, while recent changes were starting to show “some modest improvement.”

The company also stated that next steps included leveraging AI to scale content creation at a fraction of the cost and reexamining the full value chain, and that while interventions had helped stabilize and grow Consumer Beauty several years ago, “operational discipline has slipped across the organization over the past 2 years.”

The lawsuit alleges these statements contradicted Coty’s earlier messaging in its first quarter fiscal year 2026 earnings release on November 5, 2025, when the company supported its original growth outlook for the second half of 2026 through new product launches and brand innovation, operational fixes in the Consumer Beauty segment, and AI implementation, while also minimizing risks from slowing growth in the beauty market.

Market reaction following disclosures

According to the press release, on February 4, 2026 the price of Coty shares declined by $0.28 per share, or approximately 8.2%, from $3.43 per share to close at $3.15 on February 5, 2026.

On February 5, 2026, Coty announced its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, which the release describes as disappointing, with worsening performance in the Consumer Beauty segment. The company also noted the transition of its Chief Executive Officer and withdrew its fiscal year 2026 guidance for EBITDA, revising its near-term outlook downward.

The press release states that Coty attributed the results and lowered guidance to macroeconomic factors including rising costs and uncertain consumer demand, as well as a lack of “operational discipline” in both the Prestige and Consumer Beauty segments. On this news, the price of Coty shares declined by $0.49 per share, or approximately 15.6%, from $3.15 per share on February 5, 2026 to close at $2.66 on February 6, 2026.

Lead plaintiff appointment and next steps

Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired Coty securities and wish to learn more about the investigation are directed to contact Lauren Molinaro of Kirby McInerney LLP by email at investigations@kmllp.com, or to use the firm’s contact process. The press release reiterates that courts do not consider lead plaintiff applications submitted after May 22, 2026.

Firm information

Kirby McInerney LLP is described as a New York-based plaintiffs’ law firm concentrating in securities, antitrust, whistleblower, and consumer litigation. The press release also notes that the firm’s efforts in securities litigation have resulted in recoveries totaling billions of dollars.

Contacts
Kirby McInerney LLP
Lauren Molinaro, Esq.
212-699-1171
https://www.kmllp.com
https://securitiesleadplaintiff.com/
investigations@kmllp.com