Bon-Ton Sales Sink and Other Financially Challenged U.S. Companies for March 11

The items below are taken from the Credit Manager’s Weekly Summary of Financially Challenged Companies. A full issue contains information on more than 200 companies. Please visit the insideARM bookstore for information on subscribing to the Summary.

Bon-Ton Stores Inc., a York, Pa. department-store operator, reported that sales sank almost 9% in February from the year-earlier month–to $217 million, with same-store sales sliding more than 7%. The company operates almost 280 Bon-Ton, Carson Pirie Scott, Younkers and other stores.

Building Materials Holding Co., a San Francisco seller of building products, reported a fourth quarter net loss of $331 million on a 30% drop in revenue–to $419 million. For the year, it lost $313 million on a 29% fall in revenue–to $2.3 billion. Both the quarter and year included impairment charges of $337 million.

Christopher & Banks Corp., the Plymouth, Minn. specialty apparel retailer, announced that same-store sales sank 5% in February, nearly twice the drop that analysts had expected. Total sales plunged 16%–to $29.5 million.

Duluth News Tribune, a unit of Forum Communications of Forum, N.D., will cut at least 10% of its staff, responding to weak sales. 

Energy Focus Corp., a Solon, Ohio maker of fiber-optic lighting systems, reported a fourth quarter net loss of $3.7 million. Revenue declined 24%–to $5.4 million. For the year, it lost $11.3 million on a 15% decline in revenue–to $22.9 million. The quarter and year included restructuring charges of $60,000 and $457,000 respectively.

Reddy Ice Holdings Inc., a Dallas, Texas maker of packaged ice, announced that the antitrust unit of the Justice Department ordered a search of its headquarters as part of an investigation into the packaged-ice industry. Few other details are known, but Reddy Ice’s shares have plunged almost 35% over the past week.

San Jose Mercury News in California trimmed its payroll by fifty positions and replaced two editors in another round of cutting expenses.

Shells Seafood Restaurants Inc., Tampa, Fla., reported a fourth quarter net loss of $2.3 million, the same as last year, on revenue of $7.6 million, down from $9.7 million a year ago.  Same-store sales in the recent quarter sank 18%.  For the year, the firm reported a wider loss of $4.4 million on revenue of $41.3 million, compared to nearly $48 million a year ago. 

Smithfield Foods Inc., Smithfield, Va., was hit with a grand jury subpoena from two agencies of the federal government stemming from operational problems at its Souderton, Pa. facility in December. Two years ago Smithfield paid about $78,000 in civil penalties and damages for alleged wastewater incidents there.

Spectrum Brands Inc., the Atlanta, Ga., maker of batteries, lawn products and other consumer goods, retained Harbinger Capital Partners Master Fund II Ltd. to help it explore strategic alternatives. Among strategic possibilities is putting itself up for sale.

TravelCenters of America LLC, a Westlake, Ohio-based operator of truck stops, cut about 190 managerial jobs and warned that further cutbacks could follow, as a result of a slowdown in the heavy-duty trucking sector. TravelCenters lost more than $60 million in the first nine months of 2007.

TRX Inc., an Atlanta, Ga. provider of transaction processing services, reported a fourth quarter net loss of almost $4.2 million on a 30% drop in revenue–to $19.1 million. For the year, TRX lost $8 million on a 21% revenue decline–to $92.1 million.