German Court Dismisses Two Porsche Lawsuits

A Germany regional court has thrown out two individual investor lawsuits against Porsche Automobil Holding SE for alleged stock manipulation in 2008 during its failed bid to acquire Volkswagen AG.

The cases sought combined damages of less than €5 million. The same judges expect to hold oral hearings next year on three remaining investor lawsuits that claim a total of €4.1 billion in damages.

American courts have dismissed several similar lawsuits on grounds that investors have no grounds to sue in the U.S. But those plaintiffs have filed amended claims.

The German court did not immediately disclose its reasons for dismissing the two cases. But the judges said in June they had set an "extremely high" burden of proof for all the plaintiffs by requiring them to show that Porsche's actions were "vicious."

Analysts say Wednesday's ruling could signal that the company faces smaller damages or none at all in the other German lawsuits.

The plaintiffs charge that Porsche misled them by denying rumors that it planned a VW takeover even as the holding company was secretly amassing options that gave it a controlling stake in the auto giant. VW's share price zoomed when Porsche disclosed its position, thus causing big losses for investors who had bet that the stock would fall.