RAC deals with a POS problem

Publicly traded Rent-A-Center’s point-of-sale conversion didn’t live up to expectations, and now the lawyers are circling.

The securities litigation law firm of Brower Piven was one of several firms that announced a class action lawsuit kicked off in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on behalf of purchasers of Rent-A-Center Inc. shares during the period between July 27, 2015, and Oct. 10, 2016.

In the announcement, the lawyers wrote: “The complaint accuses the defendants of violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by virtue of the defendants’ failure to disclose during the Class Period that Rent-A-Center could not properly implement its new point-of-sale system (“POS”) and it was performing extremely poorly, the Company’s Acceptance Now credit system could not be implemented properly and the Company could not meet revenue and profitability guidance provided to investors, which would need to be revised. According to the complaint, following an Oct. 11, 2016, press release announcing system performance issues with the POS, which would impact several upcoming quarters, the value of Rent-A-Center shares declined significantly.”

Rent-A-Center operates on the periphery of the home improvement industry, and its merchandise mix is anchored by furniture, appliances and electronics.

Shares of RCII were trading at $8.45 at the end of trading on Monday.