Can a former shareholder of the issuer bring a section 16(b) claim?

Two other circuit courts which have addressed this issue have refused to extend the statutory qualification to former shareholders of the issuer either when the issuer remains a viable corporate entity, see Portnoy, 607 F.2d at 769 (7th Cir.1979), or when the issuer was merged out of existence. See Lewis v. McAdam, 762 F.2d 800, 804 (9th Cir.1985) (per curiam) ("We hold that where a corporation is merged out of existence by the wholly owned subsidiary of another corporation, the parent corporation is not an 'issuer' within the meaning of section 16(b). Similarly, a shareholder of the parent corporation cannot be considered an 'owner of any security of the issuer' and accordingly lacks standing to bring a section 16(b) action.").