Platform Specialty Products Lowers Earnings Guidance
October 07 2015 - 8:20AM
Dow Jones News
Platform Specialty Products Corp., an acquisitive chemical
company founded by Martin E. Franklin, said Wednesday that it was
lowering its annual earnings guidance because of currency headwinds
and weakness in the agricultural segment.
The West Palm Beach, Fla., company said that earnings before
interest, taxes, depreciation and the repayment of debt would be
between $550 million and $570 million, down from a previous range
of $620 million to $650 million.
The company said the change was due to a $25 million impact
linked to foreign-exchange volatility, a $10 million hit from a
weaker agricultural specialty chemical market, and an estimated $40
million loss from a shift in Platform's distribution strategy in
its agricultural business.
Separately, the company said it expected to close by the end of
the year the acquisitions of Alent PLC and the first of the OM
Group Electronic Chemicals and Photomasks businesses
Platform reached the agreement to buy specialty-chemicals maker
Alent in July, valuing the U.K. company at $2.1 billion. In June,
Platform announced plans to buy part of OM Group's chemicals
business for $365 million.
Additionally, Platform said Benjamin H. Gliklich has been
promoted to chief operating officer, effective immediately. Mr.
Gliklich was most recently vice president, corporate development,
finance and investor relations.
In August, Platform named Sanjiv Khattri its new finance
chief.
With the backing of financial heavyweights including activist
investor William Ackman, Mr. Franklin created Platform in 2013 as a
vehicle to buy specialty-chemicals companies.
It is a familiar strategy for Mr. Franklin, a serial acquirer.
He built up Jarden Corp. by acquiring niche consumer-products
brands and more recently launched frozen-foods business Nomad
Holdings Ltd.
Write to Ezequiel Minaya at ezequiel.minaya@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 07, 2015 08:05 ET (12:05 GMT)
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