InterTAN Announces Plans for Inversion to Canada
November 03 2003 - 5:01PM
PR Newswire (US)
InterTAN Announces Plans for Inversion to Canada TORONTO, Nov. 3
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- InterTAN, Inc. (NYSE: ITN; TSX: ITA), a
leading consumer electronics retailer of both private label and
internationally branded products, announced today that the
Company's Board of Directors has authorized management to proceed
with a team of professional advisors to prepare for a change of the
domicile of the Company from Delaware to Canada. Ultimate
implementation of this change will be subject to shareholder
approval and the Board's judgment that such a change is in the best
interests of the Company having particular regard to legislative
and market conditions at the time. When implemented, this
transaction, referred to as an inversion, is expected to provide
the Company with several advantages over its current structure.
Such advantages include an anticipated annual savings of
approximately $1 million (or $0.05 per diluted share) and the
creation of the optimal platform for a subsequent conversion of the
inverted entity to a Canadian income trust. Any such conversion
will be subject to market conditions and the determination by the
Board that it would be in the best interests of the Company's
shareholders. The Board decided to initiate the preparation for the
inversion transaction at this time because a significant portion of
the recent uncertainty concerning the effect of proposed US tax
legislation on an inversion transaction by the Company has been
eliminated as a result of recent developments in the US legislative
process. However, as definitive US tax legislation that may impact
such a transaction has not yet been enacted, the Board has retained
the discretion to defer the transaction or abandon it in its
entirety at any time during the process as future developments may
warrant. "We are extremely pleased that the clouds of uncertainty
covering the US tax legislative landscape have begun to lift," said
Brian E. Levy, President and Chief Executive Officer of the
Company. "The decision of the Board in light of such developments
to authorize the commencement of the process by which the Company
re-domiciles in Canada, where all of its business operations
reside, is a manifestation of its continuing commitment to enhance
shareholder value in a responsible and prudent manner," concluded
Levy. It is anticipated that requisite filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission will be made by early to mid January 2004
and that subject to obtaining necessary regulatory and shareholder
approvals, the Company could complete the inversion by the end of
April 2004. The costs associated with the transaction are estimated
to be in the range of $1.2 to $1.6 million ($0.06 to $0.08 per
diluted share), with as much as $750,000 (or $0.04 per diluted
share) of such amount to be incurred in the second quarter of the
current fiscal year. The potential incremental cost of these items,
not previously indicated in the Company's prior guidance of $0.42
to $0.46 per diluted share announced on October 24, 2003, is
expected to be $0.04 per diluted share during the current quarter.
Certain information disclosed in this press release, including,
among others, statements regarding the Company's future
performance, and the Company in general, constitutes
forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in the forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, consumer demand and preferences, product
availability, development of new technology, general economic
conditions, and other risks indicated in filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission such as the Company's previously
filed periodic reports, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the 2003 fiscal year. In particular, there can be no assurances
that the strategic transaction described above in respect of the
inversion of the Company to Canada will be effected. InterTAN,
Inc., headquartered in Toronto, operates approximately 960 company
retail stores and dealer outlets in Canada under the trade names
RadioShack(R), Rogers AT&T Wireless Communications Express(R),
and Battery Plus(R). InterTAN will announce its sales results for
the month of October on November 6, 2003. DATASOURCE: InterTAN,
Inc. CONTACT: James P. Maddox, C.A., Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer of InterTAN, Inc., +1-705-728-7111 Web site:
http://www.intertan.com/
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