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Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Thoratec Corporation

The law firm of Abraham Fruchter & Twersky, LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been commenced in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on behalf of a class (the "Class") consisting of all persons who purchased or otherwise acquired securities of Thoratec Corporation ("Thoratec" or the "Company") between April 28, 2004 and June 29, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period").

The Complaint charges Thoratec and certain of the Company's officers and directors with violations of federal securities laws. Plaintiff claims that defendants' omissions and material misrepresentations concerning Thoratec's operations and prospects artificially inflated the Company's stock price, inflicting damages on investors. Thoratec is the leading supplier of implantable heart pumps and left ventricular assist devices. The Company manufactures these products for use by patients with congestive heart failure, including "end-stage" patients. Traditionally, these products were used as a "bridge to transplant" for patients awaiting a heart transplant. The Company's "Destination Therapy" is its flagship new treatment option for patients with end-stage heart failure. The Company claims that its HeartMate XVE ("HeartMate") is an approved ventricular assist devise that is designed to provide permanent support for these patients.

The Complaint alleges defendants knew, but concealed from the investing public, adverse facts including: (a) the true market for Destination Therapy was far less than claimed; (b) less than 75 hospital centers have been designated Medicare-approved for Destination Therapy, though defendants claimed there were approximately 900 qualified centers in the U.S.; (c) Medicare had rigid, preset reimbursement guidelines and schedules for Destination Therapy that could only translate into a serious negative impact on Thoratec's FY 2004 sales projections for the HeartMate ventricular assist device; (d) Cardiothorasic surgeons, concerned about HeartMate's reliability in long-term settings, were rejecting and/or not accepting the device for Destination Therapy patients; (e) demand for Destination Therapy implants was not growing at the rate claimed; (f) the Company's Destination Therapy implant estimate for FY2004 was grossly overstated and internally projected to be a fraction of the estimate; (g) Thoratec's FY2004 revenue projections of $190-$200 million were overstated by tens of millions of dollars; (h) reimbursement charges were delaying implants, and the Company knew that significant expansion of existing implant programs was delayed until the expected October 1, 2004 availability of a significant increase in certain reimbursement rates; and (i) HeartMate implant sales would be depressed until Q4 2004, and the Company's Q1 2004 earnings shortfall would not be made up until Q1 2005, at best.

The Complaint further alleges that as a result of defendants' false statements, Thoratec's stock price traded at artificially inflated levels during the Class Period, increasing to $14.55 per share on May 24, 2004 and $14.84 per share on June 8, 2004, and the Company's top officers and directors were able to sell more than $143.7 million of corporate notes in an offering.

On June 29, 2004, after the market closed, Thoratec released its preliminary results for the quarter ended June 30, 2004. These results were much worse than previous forecasts. On this news, the price of Thoratec stock dropped dramatically to $10.74 per share, a more than 25% decrease from the prior day's closing price on large volume of more than 11 million shares.

Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of Thoratec publicly traded securities during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Abraham Fruchter & Twersky, LLP, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.

If you are a member of the Class, you may request that the Court appoint you as a lead plaintiff. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements set forth in the applicable law and file appropriate papers with the Court no later than October 4, 2004. You do not need to seek appointment as a lead plaintiff in order to share in any recovery. Under certain circumstances, one or more Class members may together serve as lead plaintiff. You may retain Abraham Fruchter & Twersky, LLP, or other counsel of your choice, to serve as your counsel in this action.

If you have any questions concerning this case or your rights or interests with respect to this matter, please contact plaintiff's counsel: Jack G. Fruchter, Esq. or Lawrence D. Levit, Esq. of Abraham Fruchter & Twersky, LLP, One Penn Plaza, Suite 2805, New York, New York 10119, by telephone at (212) 279-5050 or toll free at (800) 440-8986, by facsimile at (212) 279-3655, or by e-mail at JFruchter@AFTLaw.com or Llevit@AFTLaw.com.