PR NEWSWIRE) Exide Corp. & Exide Holding Europe Put on S&PWatch Negative
NEW YORK, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's today placed its
ratings of Exide Corp. and its unit, Exide Holding Europe S.A., on CreditWatch
with negative implications.
The CreditWatch placement follows recent announcements regarding
management changes and continuing profit pressures at the company.
Reading, Pa.-based Exide is a major supplier of automotive batteries in
North America and Europe. The company also supplies industrial batteries
in Europe. Over the past several months, Exide's CEO, CFO, treasurer, and
president of North American operations have all left the company. At the
same time, Exide has reported that earnings remain under pressure due to
increased operating expenses, an unfavorable sales mix, and higher
manufacturing costs in the U.S. Current ratings incorporated an expectation
that earnings would improve over the near-to-intermediate term due to ongoing
restructuring actions. Given the company's very high leverage and exposure to
extremely competitive end markets, the lack of improvement in operating
measures is a major concern. Adding to this concern are uncertainties
regarding future management strategies and prospects for improved operating
performance. Also contributing to concerns about the company's future
prospects are legal actions pending in Florida.
Standard & Poor's will monitor developments in Florida and will meet with
the company's new management team to discuss actions underway to restore
operating performance. Unless the company can demonstrate that concrete plans
are in place to restore profitability measures, improve cash generation, and
pay down debt, ratings are likely to be lowered, Standard & Poor's said.
-- CreditWire
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