Judge Throws Out Intel Investor Suit

U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel granted Intel's motion to dismiss Monday, saying plaintiffs failed to show company officials knowingly misled investors about Intel products or revenues in the third quarter of 2000.

In the lawsuit filed in San Jose, the investors claimed Intel made bullish statements in the summer of 2000 that drove the company's stock to an all-time high of more than $75 per share.

The run-up was quickly followed by news that Intel was canceling one chip line and delaying the launch of its Pentium 4 and Itanium processors because of design and development problems.

Within five weeks, Intel's stock dropped to just over $35 - a market capitalization loss of $271 billion.

In October, the court threw out the original complaint but offered plaintiffs the opportunity to refile. In Monday's decision, the court rejected the latest claim and shut all doors to amending it further.

"We maintained all along that there's no intent on Intel's part to mislead or defraud shareholders," said Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy. "We were simply reporting the business as it happened. We're gratified the judge agreed that there was no intent (to mislead) there."

Attorneys representing the lead plaintiff, the Hawaii Reinforcing Iron Workers Pension Trust Fund, did not return calls or e-mail messages seeking comment.

Shares of Intel rose 3 cents to $24.79 in Tuesday trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market.