FOAMEX ANNOUNCES PRICE INCREASES AND
DEFERRED TAX ADJUSTMENT
Names Luis Echarte to Board of
Directors
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LINWOOD, PENNSYLVANIA, June 5,
2002 – Foamex International Inc. (NASDAQ: FMXI), the leading
manufacturer of flexible polyurethane and advanced polymer foam products,
today told investors at its annual shareholders meeting that, effective July
1, 2002, it will raise prices by 16%. Other foam manufacturers have recently
announced similar price increases. The Company is also informing affected
customers of the increase. The increases will be put in place across all
Foamex product divisions except the Company’s Carpet Cushion Group, which
previously announced an increase of 8% effective June 3, 2002. The
increases are intended to offset substantial increases in the price of raw
materials from major chemical suppliers.
Foamex also told shareholders it
will record an adjustment to its deferred income taxes in the quarter ending
June 30, 2002. The adjustment will reverse approximately $99 million of a
previously recorded valuation allowance in accordance with Statement of
Financial Accounting Standards No. 109. The adjustment is based on a review
by the Company in which it was determined, based on the weight of available
evidence, that Foamex is now more likely than not to realize its net
deferred tax assets. As a result, Foamex’s net income for the current
quarter will increase by approximately $75.8 million, or approximately $2.83
per diluted share. The remainder of the adjustment will decrease goodwill
and other comprehensive loss on the balance sheet at June 30, 2002.
Separately, following the annual
meeting, Foamex announced the election of Luis J. Echarte, a senior
executive with extensive international experience, to the Foamex Board of
Directors. Echarte, 57, will also serve on the Board’s Audit and
Compensation Committees. The addition of Echarte increases the size of the
Board to 10 directors.
Echarte has had
a distinguished career of more than 30 years in global finance. He has held
increasingly senior level positions in companies such as Bacardi Imports,
Inc., Grupo Elektra (a NYSE-traded, leading Latin American retailer and
consumer finance company), and Grupo Salinas (one of Mexico’s five largest
corporate groups). Currently, Echarte is President and Chief Executive
Officer of Azteca America Network, TV Azteca’s wholly owned Spanish language
broadcasting network for the US Hispanic market.
Marshall S.
Cogan, chairman and founder of Foamex, said, "As we continue to grow the
Company, we are pleased to have Luis join our Board of Directors and help us
take Foamex to the next level. His extensive international management
experience and financial expertise with prominent US and Latin American
publicly-traded companies will be a strategic advantage to Foamex as we
execute on our goal of marketing quality flexible polyurethane and advanced
polymer foam products in industrial and consumer markets throughout the
world."
Luis Echarte
said, "I am delighted to be joining the Foamex Board at a time of exciting
growth opportunities for the company. As evidenced in the past year, Foamex
is succeeding in its efforts to increase shareholder value, and I look
forward to assisting in that goal.”
Echarte serves
on the Boards of Directors of TV Azteca and the Actinver Fund. He is also a
member of the Chief Executives Organization, the Mexican Institute of
Finance Executives, and the World Presidents Organization.
About Foamex International Inc.
Foamex, headquartered in Linwood, PA, is the world's leading
producer of comfort cushioning for bedding, furniture, carpet cushion and
automotive markets. The Company also manufactures high-performance polymers
for diverse applications in the industrial, aerospace, defense, electronics
and computer industries as well as filtration and acoustical applications
for the home. For more information visit the Foamex web site at
http://www.foamex.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains, and
oral statements made from time to time by representatives of the Company may
contain, forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such forward-looking statements include,
without limitation, those relating to completion of the operational
restructuring as currently contemplated and the currently anticipated
benefits of the restructuring, including those relating to the work force
reductions, cost savings and restructuring charges from Project
Transformation, the expected benefits of expanding the use of VPF
technology, the Company's ability to introduce new products, enhance sales
growth and margins and the outlook for the Company's financial performance.
These forward-looking statements are affected by risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that the Company makes about, among other things, its ability to
implement customer selling price increases in response to higher raw
material costs, raw material price increases, general economic conditions,
conditions in the capital markets, the interest rate environment, the level
of automotive production, carpet production, furniture and bedding
production and housing starts, the completion of various
restructuring/consolidation plans, the achievement of management’s business
plans, its capital and debt structure (including various financial
covenants), litigation and changes in environmental legislation and
environmental conditions and other factors mentioned in the documents filed
by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. While the
Company believes that its assumptions regarding the foregoing matters are
reasonable, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, and therefore there
can be no assurance that the Company's forward-looking statements will prove
to be accurate. Additional information that could cause actual results to
vary materially from the results anticipated may be found in the Company's
most recent Form 10-K and other reports filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Readers should be aware that any forward-looking
statement made in this press release or elsewhere by the Company speaks only
as of the date on which it is made, and the Company disclaims any obligation
or intent to update any of the factors listed above or forward-looking
statements.
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