Halifax advanced materials-maker Meta Materials has agreed to settle two class action lawsuits from shareholders in the United States for a combined $3 million.

The suits, one federal and one in Nevada, alleged that Meta had misled investors about its rate of progress on business opportunities and failed to appropriately disclose the possibility of a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into its 2021 reverse listing on the Nasdaq. In a statement, Meta said at least $2.75 million of the settlement costs will be paid by the company’s insurers and that the agreements do not include any admissions of wrongdoing on its part.

The news comes three weeks after Meta shareholders rejected a proposed reverse stock split aimed at bolstering its share price. The Nasdaq in October warned that the embattled company’s stock had fallen bellow the minimum bid price of one American dollar and gave Meta until Feb. 21 to boost its price or be delisted. Shares are currently trading at around seven cents.

“We have appealed to you to consider the R/S (reverse split) in order to avoid delisting META from the Nasdaq,” Meta’s board told shareholders before the vote. “Share liquidity would likely plummet in an OTC market, making it even more difficult for shareholders to recover prior losses. As a Nasdaq-listed company, META and its loyal shareholders like you may have an avenue to recover.”

The prior losses alluded to by the board have included the share price shedding about 94 percent of its value in the past 12 months. Meta, which was once Atlantic Canada’s first publicly traded unicorn with a market cap of US$2.2 billion, is now valued at US$33 million, according to data provided by the Globe and Mail.

The board has pointed some of the blame for that underperformance at former CEO and co-founder George Palikaras, who it "removed” on Oct. 17,  saying his “founding creativity that began this company clashed with the fiscal health of META.” The move followed public disagreement between Palikaras and other senior leadership over how to respond to share price volatility. Palikaras was replaced with turnaround artist Jim Fusaro, who has since backed out due to health issues, with former COO Uzi Sasson being elevated to the top job.

Meta has developed a platform technology for advanced materials development, particularly materials that refract or filter light. Its first commercial venture was making anti-laser coatings for Airbus cockpits, and it has since revealed interests in an array of research projects, the costs of which the board said forced the company to raise another $6 million via a direct offering on Dec. 4.

The board added that it spent six days unsuccessfully attempting to entice Palikaras to stay at Meta in another role, such as CTO.

“My mandate as the new CEO is to identify opportunities for the company that extend beyond our technology to commercialization, turning the culture on its head from my tech-driven predecessors,” said the current chief executive, Sasson, in a statement after he was appointed.

“META continues to make progress with a more focused business strategy, concentrating our sales/marketing efforts around our core business lines, while streamlining expenses. This is not an overnight process, but we are working round the clock to make strides."