MIAMI, Sept. 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Evercel, Inc. [OTC Pink: EVRC] today issued the following letter to shareholders, providing an update on the Company’s business as it approaches its Annual Meeting:
Dear Valued Shareholders:
It has been an active period at Evercel and we are very excited about our holdings, positioning and path forward. We are writing to provide some business highlights ahead of the Company’s Annual Meeting, which will be held on October 7, 2021 at 10:00am ET.
Put plainly, we have assembled a great asset base, which we believe is valuable now and will be more so in the future. Since 2012, we have grown $18 million of cash into approximately $80 million worth of assets, after fees. Importantly, we believe there is significant incremental, embedded value in these assets that is yet to be recognized by the market, as demonstrated by the mismatch between the value of Evercel’s assets and Evercel’s current market capitalization. We are disappointed that to date the Company’s stock price has not appreciated consistent with the increase in value of Evercel’s underlying investments. The Board will be taking important steps to increase communication with shareholders, as described below. Additionally, we are confident that our application to be listed on the OTCQX market and our recent additions to the Board will help us better harness that value.
Highlights from this year include:
- Completing the ZAGG Acquisition at an Attractive Valuation. Perhaps most importantly in February, Evercel participated as an investor in the acquisition of ZAGG, Inc., a Nasdaq listed company, which gives Evercel indirectly a majority position. ZAGG is a leading provider of cell phone accessories, such as cases, chargers and battery packs, including such well-known brand names as Invisible Shield, Gear 4, Mophie and Halo. ZAGG is a strong and highly profitable business, and its products receive prime placement at top retailers including Target, Best Buy and Walmart. So far, ZAGG has exceeded our expectations and the ZAGG business is currently expected to generate in excess of $500 million in revenue and $50 million in adjusted EBITDA for the fiscal year ending March 2022. ZAGG already is experiencing strong order demand for the Apple iPhone 13 release. Additionally, ZAGG successfully refinanced its term loan to both reduce the interest rate and extend the term.
- Strong Performance of Printronix and Current Technologies Investments. We continue to be pleased with our 80.1% stake in Printronix. To date, Evercel’s $18 million investment has delivered over $50 million in cash proceeds back to Evercel, and we believe the investment has the potential to deliver additional returns in the coming years either through a sale or through dividends of future cash flow. Despite challenges from Covid, Printronix’s revenue declined only modestly in the past year and cash flow from operations was up approximately 250% from the prior year. Evercel’s investment in Current Technologies, an early stage investment, is also on a positive trajectory. Current's software empowers brands to manage influencer marketing campaigns and ambassador programs at scale, offering solutions for influencer discovery, community messaging, sales tracking and payments. Although Current is a relatively modest investment of $3 million for Evercel, we expect Current Technologies to generate between $1-2 million of recurring software revenues this year. The company is experiencing significant growth going into the end of the year, and we are excited by its potential.
- Listing on OTCQX Market. Recently, Evercel filed an application to trade our common stock on the OTCQX® Best Market. If the application is approved, the Company will begin to report financials quarterly, and we believe the listing will result in improved liquidity for existing and future shareholders. As the Company executes its strategy and grows, there may be additional opportunities to become registered on a broader exchange.
- Refreshing our Board with Highly Qualified New Directors. We have made substantial strides to enhance our corporate governance in the past year by replacing a longtime board member with new individuals who bring relevant, professional experience and valuable new perspectives to our Board. This year we have added three new directors: Greg Falk, Ted Zagat and Patrick McGeehin. Mr. Falk has spent 25 years providing due diligence and tax structuring advice at top global accounting firms, retiring most recently as a Partner at BDO and initially retiring previous to that as a Partner at KPMG leading their M&A advisory practice. Mr. Zagat brings tremendous experience as a successful entrepreneur, including co-founding Rimeto, an enterprise software company acquired by Slack in 2020. Mr. Zagat is also a savvy technology investor. Mr. McGeehin also brings valuable experience to our board, having been a certified public accountant and Senior Managing Director with the international consulting firm of FTI Consulting, Inc. These talented new directors will provide valuable management, tax and leadership insights as we continue to enhance value for Evercel’s shareholders.
If you haven’t already, you soon will be receiving a proxy statement from the Company regarding the Annual Meeting. In the proxy, we provide background information on our two highly qualified nominees for election to the Board, Patrick McGeehin and Richard Perkins. We believe Mr. McGeehin and Mr. Perkins warrant your support as both have been instrumental on the Board in helping define the Company’s path forward, and we are confident that, if reelected, Mr. Perkins and Mr. McGeehin will strengthen leadership’s efforts to help Evercel’s share price better reflect the Company’s true value. As noted above, Mr. McGeehin, who recently joined the Board, has valuable accounting and consulting experience, and he also has been a shareholder in Evercel for over a decade with a meaningful number of shares. Mr. Perkins brings with him decades of management and investing experience that we believe will be additive to Evercel’s efforts to drive value creation. You can find additional information about their qualifications in the proxy statement. A proxy card for you to vote your shares in support is also included with the proxy.
Finally, we also wanted to let you know that as we approach October 7th, you may be contacted by our proxy firm, Okapi Partners. We encourage you to speak with them, as they can answer any questions you may have and provide accurate information about the nominees, management and the existing Board so you can confidently vote your shares. Okapi can be reached at (212) 297-0720. You can view the webcast of the annual meeting at www.cstproxy.com/evercel/2021.
We believe the past year has been a very productive one for your company, Evercel, and one that has positioned us well for the future. We trust that you are excited about our prospects as we are, and we hope to have your support at the Annual Meeting. We plan to build on the success and continue seeking out compelling opportunities to increase the value and share price of your company.
Sincerely,
The Evercel Board of Directors
About Evercel, Inc.
Evercel, Inc. is a holding company that brings an entrepreneurial approach to acquiring and managing businesses through a hands-on, data-driven approach as it partners with strong management teams to drive long term results. Evercel’s current portfolio companies, which are sourced and managed by CoronaPark Investment Partners, include Printronix, ZAGG and Current Technologies.
Evercel is currently exempted from the SEC’s periodic reporting requirements, and voluntarily reports financial and other information from time to time. Evercel may change its reporting practices at any time, in its discretion and without notice. www.evercel.com
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning the federal securities laws. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release, including statements regarding our plans to pursue trading of our common stock on the OTCQX, are forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are generally delivered in the future tense and/or are preceded by words such as "may," "will," "should," "forecast,“ "projected," "could," "expect," "suggest," "believe," "estimate," "anticipate," "intend," "plan,“ or similar words, or the negatives of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Evercel cautions readers not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
Investors:
info@evercel.com
or
Okapi Partners
Bruce Goldfarb/Chuck Garske/Teresa Huang
(212) 297-0720
info@okapipartners.com
Media:
Reevemark
Hugh Burns/Paul Caminiti/Jessica Engle
evercelteam@reevemark.com
