Securities fraud attorneys are currently investigating claims on behalf of TNP Strategic Retail Trust Inc. investors. TNP Strategic Retail Trust is a non-traded REIT, or real estate investment trust, which has filed a Securities and Exchange Commission Form 8-K March 19, 2013 that announced its dividend payments are suspended. No dividend payments will be paid for the first quarter of this year. Furthermore, TNP Strategic Retail Trust customers were told that they should not assume that they will receive dividends for the rest of 2013, either.
The reason for the suspension of dividends stated by TNP Strategic Retail Trust is that it is unable to access short-term cash because it is in negotiation with lenders regarding whether it is in loan default. Declared effective on August 7, 2009, by the SEC, TNP Strategic Retail Trust is a non-traded REIT that, according to REIT Wrecks, raised $21 million through the end of Q3 2010. Additionally, TNP Strategic Retail Trust reportedly suffered a net loss and had a negative operating cash flow throughout the first nine months of 2010.
Stock fraud lawyers are investigating the possibility that brokerage firms may be held liable for the recommendation of TNP investments. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority rules have established that brokers and firms have an obligation to fully disclose all the risks of a given investment when making recommendations, and those recommendations must be suitable for the individual investor receiving the recommendation given their age, investment objectives and risk tolerance. Furthermore, brokerage firms must, before approving an investment’s sale to a customer, conduct a reasonable investigation of the securities and issuer. The firms that recommended this investment to clients may have done so improperly, in which case investors may be able to recover losses.
According to securities fraud attorneys, non-traded REIT investments like the TNP Strategic Retail Trust typically offer commissions between 7 and 10 percent, which is significantly higher than traditional investments like mutual funds and stocks. This higher commission may help explain why brokerage firms are motivated to recommend these investments despite their possible unsuitability.
If you invested in TNP Strategic Retail Trust and suffered significant losses as a result, you may be able to recover your losses through securities arbitration. To find out more about your legal rights and options, contact a stock fraud lawyer at The Law Office of Christopher J. Gray at (866) 966-9598 for a no-cost, confidential consultation.