Finch, Pruyn Board Recommends Acceptance of Purchase Offer
GLENS FALLS, N.Y., April 2 -- Richard J. Carota, Chairman of the Board of Directors of paper manufacturer Finch, Pruyn & Co., Inc., has announced that the Board of Directors has voted to recommend that the company's shareholders accept an offer from Atlas Paper Resources LLC to purchase all of the company's assets, including its manufacturing facilities in Glens Falls, N.Y., and its Adirondack forestland. The shareholders will vote on the transaction at a meeting on Tuesday, April 24, 2007.
Assuming the sale is approved by shareholders, Atlas Paper Resources LLC has invited Mr. Carota to remain with the new company, and he has accepted. Mr. Carota, 69, has been employed by Finch, Pruyn for nearly 51 years and has served as president since 1982, and as chairman and chief executive officer since 1984.
Atlas Paper Resources LLC is an entity established by Connecticut-based Atlas Holdings LLC, Blue Wolf Capital and other investors to acquire Finch, Pruyn. Atlas Holdings LLC is a holding company that operates businesses in a number of industrial sectors, including the paper, packaging, wood products and steel industries. Atlas operates facilities in more than 30 locations throughout North America and Europe and employs in excess of 2,000 people. In the paper industry, Atlas has many years of experience through its ownership of Forest Resources LLC, a paper and packaging company that operates four paper mills and nine packaging plants. Blue Wolf Capital is a private equity firm that invests in companies in which carefully structured transactions can change organizations and create value. Additional information can be found at www.atlasholdingsllc.com, and www.blue-wolf.com
Atlas Holdings LLC Chairman Andrew Bursky said, "Unlike private investment firms that buy and sell businesses quickly to maximize short-term profits, Atlas Paper Resources LLC will own and operate Finch, Pruyn & Company for the long-term and preserve Finch, Pruyn & Company's culture of providing high- quality fine paper and service to its customers. We intend to retain the existing management team and employees of Finch and to work closely with them to build on the strong foundation that they have established."
Finch, Pruyn, was founded in 1865 as a sawmill, lumberyard and quarry operation on the Upper Hudson River, and began papermaking operations in 1904. Today, the company is a leader in the premium uncoated printing paper market, manufacturing more than 250,000 tons per year for advertising materials, book publishing and business office uses from its single Glens Falls mill. The company employs 850 people and is the second largest private landowner in New York State. Finch Paper is recognized throughout the graphic design and printing industries for outstanding brightness, smoothness and print reproduction. The company is also widely regarded for its customer service and its extensive stocking program, with more than 500 different items available for immediate shipment coast-to-coast. Additional information on Finch, Pruyn & Co., Inc., can be found at www.finchpaper.com
Source: Finch, Pruyn & Co., Inc.
CONTACT:
John Brodt,
+1-518-792-3856, for Finch, Pruyn
Timothy J. Fazio,
Managing Partner,
+1-203-622-0207, for Atlas Holdings LLC
Web site:
http://www.finchpaper.com/
http://www.atlasholdingsllc.com/
http://www.blue-wolf.com/
