The Beard Company Reports Conversion of 2009 Subordinated Notes
January 05 2009 - 8:30AM
PR Newswire (US)
OKLAHOMA CITY, Jan. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Beard Company
(OTC:BRCO) (BULLETIN BOARD: BRCO) today reported that on December
16, 2008 it notified the holders of $192,851 in 12% Convertible
Subordinated Notes due August 31, 2009 (the "2009 Notes") purchased
in 2006 (the "2006 Issue") that they must convert their notes into
common stock by January 15, 2009. Following receipt of the notice,
holders of the 2006 Issue voluntarily agreed to convert their notes
effective December 31, 2008, and they will receive interest to
January 15, 2009. Conversion prices for the 2006 Issue of Notes
ranged from $1.324 to $1.339 per share. Accordingly, holders of
such Notes will receive 145,412 shares of the Company's common
stock upon conversion. On December 18, 2008 the Company notified
holders of the remaining $1,135,000 of 2009 Notes purchased in 2005
(the "2005 Issue") of the forced conversion of the 2006 Issue, and
asked such holders to voluntarily convert their 2009 Notes
effective December 31, 2008 and receive interest to February 28,
2009. The 2005 Issue of 2009 Notes are convertible into common
stock at a price of $2.25 per share. Holders of $695,000 principal
amount of the 2005 Issue have agreed to convert, and will receive
308,887 shares of the Company's common stock upon such conversion.
As a result, a total of $887,851, or 66.9% of the outstanding 2009
Notes will be converted at year-end 2008 into 454,299 common
shares, leaving $440,000 of the 2005 Issue of the Notes
outstanding. The Beard Company's common stock closed in trading on
the OTC Bulletin Board on December 31, 2008 at $4.00 per share.
Holders of the 2009 Notes that are converting to common stock will
receive cash for 5.02 fractional shares based upon such Closing
Price. Following the conversions, the Company's total number of
common shares outstanding has increased to 9,830,586. "The
conversion of these Notes represents the achievement of another
milestone in the turnaround currently underway at our Company,"
noted Herb Mee, Jr., President of The Beard Company. "The
conversions have increased our shareholders' equity account by
$888,000 for a relatively small amount of cash, while retiring most
of our 2009 Notes. These improvements will be reflected in our
year-end balance sheet and financial ratios. We have continued to
improve our financial condition while enhancing our market
capitalization, and I am pleased to report that BRCO's common stock
price increased 627% during the year ended December 31, 2008,
compared with a 41% decline in the Nasdaq Composite Index." About
The Beard Company The Beard Company creates, acquires, and/or
invests in businesses that management believes have high growth
potential and/or above-average profit potential and can enhance
shareholder value. The Company is currently involved in carbon
dioxide (CO2) gas production; oil and gas activities; coal
reclamation activities; e-commerce activities conducted through its
starpay(TM) subsidiary; and minerals exploration and development
through its Geohedral investment. The Company is headquartered in
Oklahoma City and its common stock trades on the OTC Bulletin Board
under the symbol "BRCO". Forward-Looking Statements This document
may include statements that constitute "forward-looking"
statements, usually containing the words "believe", "estimate",
"project", "expect", or similar expressions. Forward-looking
statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such
differences include, but are not limited to, the Company's lack of
profitability in recent years; the ability to service outstanding
debt and secure capital to fund operations; the ability to
negotiate and execute contracts in connection with the Company's
coal reclamation activities; the outcome of a lawsuit against Visa;
future trends in commodities prices; financial, geological or
mechanical difficulties affecting Geohedral's planned geological
work programs; uncertainties surrounding estimates of mineralized
material; and other risks detailed in Beard's filings with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking
statements, Beard undertakes no obligation to update these
statements for revisions or changes in the future. For Additional
Information, Please Contact: Herb Mee, Jr., President, at (405)
842-2333 or via email at or RJ Falkner & Company, Inc.,
Investor Relations Counsel, at (800) 377-9893 or via email at
DATASOURCE: The Beard Company CONTACT: Herb Mee, Jr., President of
The Beard Company, +1-405-842-2333, ; or RJ Falkner & Company,
Inc., Investor Relations Counsel, 1-800-377-9893, , for The Beard
Company
Copyright