LDK Solar sells 12 million new shares to Fulai
LDK Solar completes sale of 12 million new shares to investment firm Fulai for about $15.4M
SUNNYVALE, Calif. (AP) -- LDK Solar Co. Ltd. said Tuesday that it sold its remaining 12 million newly issued shares to Fulai Investments Ltd. for $1.28 per share, making a total purchase price of about $15.4 million.
LDK, which makes, solar wafers, cells and modules, originally struck a deal in January to sell Fulai 17 million newly issued shares for $1.83 each or a total of about $31.1 million, giving the investment firm a 12 percent stake in the company.
In February LDK completed the sale of 5 million shares for $1.83 each, or a total of about $9.2 million. But the company's shares continued to tumble in the weeks since, losing about 30 percent of their value.
As part of the deal, Fulai receives the right to name two non-executive directors to LDK's board. LDK said it plans to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes.
LDK, like other solar companies, has been hurt by a drop in demand and prices for solar products. It hasn't posted an annual profit since 2010, and analysts polled by FactSet think 2012 revenue was less than half of LDK's 2011 level.
LDK shares lost 74 percent of their value in the past 12 months. They are worth a fraction of their peak, near $77, reached in September 2007.
LDK shares fell 9 cents, or 7.7 percent, to $1.08 in afternoon trading, after dropping as low as $1.04 earlier in the day. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between 71 cents and $4.57.
