News of the bankruptcy filing of Palm Harbor Homes made the papers Tuesday. The Dallas Morning News ran the headline Addison’s Palm Harbor Homes Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection. The paper noted Palm Harbor and five of its subsidiaries sought Chapter 11 protection as part of a plan to protect assets while it completes the sale. California-based, Cavco-owned Fleetwood Homes Inc. has agreed to purchase the company in a deal that must be approved by the bankruptcy court. The move came after more than four years of losses. “Prolonged poor industry conditions have depleted the liquidity of Palm Harbor Homes, despite management’s ongoing efforts to improve and scale back operations as prudent and restructure our existing debt,” Palm Harbor CEO Larry Keener said in a prepared statement. Bloomberg news also filed a report saying Fleetwood will provide Palm Harbor with $50 million in financing for the Chapter 11 case and that the bankruptcy petition says assets are $321 million with debt totaling $280 million. Principal liabilities include $34 million owing to Textron Financial Corp. and $53.8 million on 3.25 percent convertible senior notes due 2024. The unsecured creditor with the largest claim is Universal Forest Products Inc., owed $2.6 million.
