PHILADELPHIA, June 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Berger & Montague, P.C. has filed a class action in the Northern District of Georgia on behalf of purchasers of SunTrust Capital IX 7.875% Trust Preferred Securities (the "Securities") (NYSE:STI-PZ) of SunTrust Banks, Inc. ("SunTrust") pursuant and/or traceable to a false and misleading registration statement and prospectus (collectively, the "Registration Statement") issued in connection with the Company's February 2008 initial public offering of the Securities (the "Offering"). The complaint charges SunTrust and certain of its officers and directors with violations of the Securities Act of 1933. SunTrust is a financial holding corporation, providing a range of financial products and services to consumer and corporate customers in the United States and internationally. The complaint alleges that defendants consummated the Offering pursuant to the false and misleading Registration Statement, selling 27.6 million units of the Securities at $25 per share, for proceeds of over $690 million. The Registration Statement incorporated SunTrust's financial results for 2007 and Form 8-K dated February 12, 2008. In November 2008, SunTrust received $3.5 billion in funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program and an additional $1.4 billion in December 2008. Then on January 22, 2009, when SunTrust released its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2008, SunTrust reported its first quarterly loss in at least two decades, cut its quarterly dividend from $0.54 to $0.10 per common share, and announced a significant increase in its provision for loan losses. When this became public, the price of the Securities declined significantly. According to the complaint, the true facts which were omitted from the Registration Statement were: (a) the Company's assets, including loans and mortgage-related securities were impaired to a greater extent than the Company had disclosed; (b) defendants failed to properly record losses for impaired assets; (c) the Company's internal controls were inadequate to prevent the Company from improperly reporting its impaired assets; and (d) the Company's capital base was not as well capitalized as it had represented. Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of the Securities pursuant and/or traceable to the Registration Statement issued in connection with the Company's Offering (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Berger & Montague, which has extensive experience in prosecuting securities class actions. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than July 14, 2009. For more information about this case, please contact: Sherrie R. Savett, Esq. Russell D. Paul, Esq. Casey M. Preston, Esq. BERGER & MONTAGUE, P.C. 1622 Locust Street Philadelphia, PA 19103 Telephone: 215-875-3000 or 1-888-891-2289 Berger & Montague, founded in 1970, is a pioneer in class action litigation. The firm's approximately 65 attorneys concentrate their practice in complex litigation including securities fraud and corporate governance, antitrust, civil and human rights, consumer protection and environmental and mass torts, and have recovered several billion dollars for consumers and investors. DATASOURCE: Berger & Montague, P.C. CONTACT: Sherrie R. Savett, Esq., Russell D. Paul, Esq., Casey M. Preston, Esq., all of Berger & Montague, P.C., +1-215-875-3000, +1-888-891-2289 Web Site: http://www.bergermontague.com/

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