Rumors circulate on future of Kodak

Kodak is said to be on the verge of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it looks to safeguard its business, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
 
Quoting sources close to Kodak, WSJ said the company is making last-ditch efforts to sell off some of its patent portfolio and could avoid Chapter 11 if it succeeds. The company has started preparing for a filing in case those efforts fail, including talking to banks about US$1 billion in financing to keep it afloat during bankruptcy proceedings, the WSJ sources are quoted as saying.

Chapter 11 is a chapter of the United States Bankruptcy Code, which permits reorganization under US bankruptcy laws. In Chapter 11, in most instances the debtor remains in control of its business operations as a debtor in possession, and is subject to the oversight and jurisdiction of the court.

As well as consumer products, photographic and document imaging divisions, Kodak has wide interests in the package printing market. Its Graphic Communications business covers: web-fed and sheet-fed presses; flexographic printing solutions, such as the Flexcel NX range, CTP and other flexo printing consumables; proofing; workflow management; and security and brand protection solutions, such as Traceless AD.
 
Last November Kodak announced a third quarter loss of US$222m, and said it could run out of cash within a year unless it can sell its digital imaging patents or raise money selling debt.
 
Kodak’s share price was down 28 percent after the WSJ article was published.  
 
Kodak will hold an earnings conference call at 11:00am ET on January 26, when it is expected chairman and chief executive officer Antonio Perez (pictured, above) will address the future of the company.