Lear Corporation announced today that it has successfully emerged from its court-supervised financial reorganisation with a ‘strong and flexible balance sheet, positive operating results in the third quarter, a growing sales backlog and a robust competitive profile’.
The company also announced that its new common stock will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under its historical NYSE stock symbol “LEA” and will begin trading on a “when issued” basis (LEA WI) today. The company expects its common shares to begin “regular way” trading within several days thereafter.
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“We have moved through the financial restructuring process without missing a beat operationally. We have continued to win new business globally, strengthened our industry-leading global capabilities and the spirit of the Lear team has never been more positive,” said Bob Rossiter, Lear’s Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President.
“Our customer relationships remain the best in the industry, allowing us to continue winning new business in every region of the world.”
Lear said its present net sales backlog totals $1.4 billion for 2010 to 2012, which is approximately 25% higher than the prior status, despite lower industry production levels.
The company says that its new backlog also represents continued diversification of Lear’s sales, with 40% in its seating business and 60% in its growing electrical and electronic business.
It says that more than half of new business comes from outside North America.
As a result of the financial reorganization, Lear says it has reduced its debt obligations by approximately US$2.8bn and emerged with a ‘strong and flexible balance sheet’.
With over US$1bn in cash, Lear says it has has available liquidity to support its global operating needs and growth plans. Upon exit, Lear has less than US$1 billion of debt at competitive interest rates and no near-term maturities.
“Moving forward, we are committed to maintaining a disciplined financial profile and an investment grade focus that will enable us to continue investing in new products and technologies globally, as well as growth in emerging markets,” Mr. Rossiter said.
“As a result of our multi-year business transformation, we have streamlined our global cost footprint and improved our operating efficiency in every region of the world. Going forward, we have a focused overall plan to drive further sales growth and improved margins.”
