SHISHI, China, Oct. 3 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- China Marine Food Group Ltd. (OTC Bulletin Board: CMFO), a China-based processor and distributor of seafood snack foods and fresh and frozen marine catch, today announced that the Company’s board of directors has approved a $3 million stock repurchase program.
On October 1, 2008, the Board of Directors authorized the Company to repurchase up to $3.0 million of its common stock through March 31, 2010. The amount and timing of specific repurchases are subject to market conditions, applicable legal requirements and other factors deemed appropriate by the Company’s CEO and President. Repurchases may be in open-market transactions or through privately negotiated transactions, and the repurchase program may be expanded by the Board of Directors in the future. The Company has approximately 23.0 million shares of common stock outstanding and approximately 11.3 million shares are in the public float as of today. Any shares repurchased by the Company in this program will be retired to the treasury while reducing the number of outstanding shares of its common stock.
"After careful consideration and evaluating a number of suitable investment opportunities, we believe an investment in our Company has the potential to yield a significant return for our shareholders," stated Pengfei Liu, Chairman and CEO of China Marine. "We currently maintain a strong balance sheet, with approximately $29 million in net cash and equivalents as of June 30, 2008, and are also cash flow positive from operations. Taking this buyback into consideration, we will have maintained a sufficient cash balance to complete both Phase One of our plant expansion which comes online this quarter and Phase Two of plant expansion which will begin during 2009 without the need for raising any additional capital," Liu concluded.
About China Marine
China Marine Food Group Ltd. processes and distributes processed seafood products, and fresh and frozen marine catch to five provinces in the PRC. Founded in 1994, China Marine has grown steadily and positioned its "Mingxiang" brand as a category leader in 1,300 retail sales points in the PRC. The Company has received "The Famous Brand" and "Green Food" awards. It is located in Fujian Province, one of the largest coastal provinces in the PRC and a vital navigation hub between the East China Sea and the South China Sea. The Company is committed to the highest standard of quality control with the ISO9001, ISO14001, HACCP certification and the EU export registration.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This release contains certain "forward-looking statements" relating to the business of China Marine Food Group Limited and its subsidiary companies, which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "believes, expects" or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including all business uncertainties relating to product development, marketing, concentration in a single customer, raw material costs, market acceptance, future capital requirements, competition in general and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Certain of these risks and uncertainties are or will be described in greater detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. China Marine Food Group Limited is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward- looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction.
