SORL Auto Parts, Inc. (NASDAQ:SORL) (“SORL” or the
“Company”), a leading manufacturer and distributor of automotive
brake systems as well as other key safety-related auto parts in
China, announced that it has increased the size of its board
of directors (the “Board”) from seven (7) to nine (9) and appointed
Mr. Xiao Lin and Mr. Binghua Feng as independent directors to fill
newly created vacancies.
Mr. Lin (age 31) has been serving as the CEO and portfolio
manager of Aspen Capital Management (HK) Limited since August
2017. Between August 2016 and August 2017, Mr. Lin was a
portfolio manager of Pine River Capital Management (HK)
Limited. Between August 2012 and August 2016, Mr. Lin was a
senior associate of Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C. Since April
2017, Mr. Lin has been serving as an independent director of
Sichuan Meifeng Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. Mr. Lin received
his Master of Finance degree from the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT) in 2011 and his Bachelor of Science degree in
Applied Math from Renmin University of China in 2010.
Mr. Feng (age 45) has been serving as the Executive Vice
President and Secretary-General of Zhejiang Automobile &
Motorcycle Parts Chamber Of Commerce since 2010. Mr. Feng has
extensive experience in the auto parts industry. Mr. Feng received
his associate degree from Northeast University of Finance and
Economics of China in 2013.
There are no understandings or arrangements between each of Mr.
Lin and Mr. Feng and any other person pursuant to which they were
selected as directors. There is no family relationship between each
of Mr. Lin and Mr. Feng with any of our other officers and
directors, or person nominated or chosen by the Company to become
an officer or director. In the past two years there have been no
transactions in which the Company was or is to be a participant and
the amount involved exceeds $120,000, and in which the Mr. Lin or
Mr. Feng had or will have a direct or indirect material interest,
and there are currently no such proposed transaction.
Mr. Xiao Lin and Mr. Binghua Feng have formed the special
committee of independent directors (the “Special Committee”) to
review, evaluate and negotiate the non-binding preliminary
proposal letter, dated April 25, 2019, from Mr. Xiaoping Zhang,
SORL’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (“Chairman Zhang”), Ms.
Shuping Chi and Mr. Xiaofeng Zhang, directors of the Company, and
Ruili Group Co., Ltd. (together, the “Consortium”) to acquire all
of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company not
already owned by the Consortium, and any alternative thereto and to
make a recommendation with respect to the Proposal and any
alternative thereto.
The Company cautions its shareholders and others considering
trading in its securities that neither the Special Committee nor
the Board has set a definitive timetable for the completion of its
evaluation of the Proposal or to make any decision with respect to
the Company’s response to the Proposal. There can be no assurance
that any definitive offer will be made, that any agreement will be
executed or that the Proposal or any other transaction will be
approved or consummated.
About SORL Auto Parts, Inc.
As a global tier one supplier of brake and control systems to
the commercial vehicle industry, SORL Auto Parts, Inc. is the
market leader for commercial vehicles brake systems, such as trucks
and buses in China. The Company distributes products both within
China and internationally under the SORL trademark. SORL is listed
among the top 100 auto component suppliers in China, with a product
range that includes 65 categories with over 2000 specifications in
brake systems and others. The Company has four authorized
international sales centers in UAE, India, the United States and
Europe. SORL is working to establish a broader global sales
network. For more information, please
visit http://www.sorl.cn.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release may include certain statements that are not
descriptions of historical facts, but are forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by
the use of forward-looking terminology such as “expects,”
“anticipates,” “believes,” “targets,” “goals,” “projects,”
“intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “may,” “will,” “should”
or similar expressions. For example, when the Company describes the
evaluation of the preliminary non-binding proposal letter, it is
using forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
may also include statements about the Company’s proposed
discussions related to its business or growth strategy, which are
subject to change. Such information is based upon expectations of
the Company’s management that were reasonable when made, but may
prove to be incorrect. All of such assumptions are inherently
subject to uncertainties and contingencies beyond the Company’s
control and upon assumptions with respect to future business
decisions, which are subject to change. The Company does not
undertake to update the forward-looking statements contained in
this press release. These risks and uncertainties may include, but
are not limited to general political, economic and business
conditions which may impact the demand for commercial vehicles or
passenger vehicles in China and the other significant markets where
the Company’s products are sold, uncertainty regarding such
political, economic and business conditions, trends in consumer
debt levels and bad debt write-offs, general uncertainty related to
possible recessions, natural disasters, the political stability of
China and the impact of any of those events on demand for
commercial or passenger vehicles, changes in consumer confidence,
new product development and introduction, competitive products and
pricing, seasonality, availability of alternative sources of supply
in the case of the loss of any significant supplier or any
supplier’s inability to fulfill the Company’s orders, cost of labor
and raw materials, the loss of or curtailed sales to significant
customers, the Company’s dependence on key employees and officers,
the ability to secure and protect trademarks, patents and other
intellectual property rights, potential effects of competition in
the Company’s business, the dependency of the Company upon the
normal operation of its sole manufacturing facility, potential
effect of the economic and currency instability in China and
countries to which the Company sold its products, the ability of
the Company to successfully manage its expenses on a continuing
basis, the continued availability to the Company of financing and
credit on favorable terms, business disruptions, disease, general
risks associated with doing business in China or other countries
including, without limitation, foreign trade policies, import
duties, tariffs, quotas, political and economic stability, and the
other factors discussed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For
additional information regarding known material factors that could
cause the Company’s results to differ from its projected results,
please see its filings with the SEC, including its Annual Report on
Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and Current Reports on
Form 8-K. Copies of filings made with the SEC are available through
the SEC’s electronic data gathering analysis retrieval system
(EDGAR) at http://www.sec.gov.
Contact Information
Phyllis Huang +86.151.6770.5972 +86.577.6581.7721
phyllis@sorl.com.cn
Kevin TheissInvestor RelationsAwaken Advisors646-726-6511
kevin.theiss@awakenlab.com
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