Oakley chairman and CEO Jim Jannard has advised the company that he intends to purchase up to two million shares of Oakley common stock from time to time in the open market, subject to market conditions.
“The Oakley brand continues to rank among the most respected in the world,'' Jannard said. “Although our recently announced second quarter earnings were lower than our initial expectations, consumer response to our newest 2004 sunglass introductions has been strong and forced our in-house manufacturing operations and third-party vendors to scramble to respond to demand. In addition, we're very excited about the upcoming holiday launch of Thump(tm), our first integrated MP3 player/sunglass style. We believe our refocused marketing efforts designed to reinvigorate our emotional connection with the younger consumer are beginning to pay off. I continue to believe that based on the fundamental strengths of the company, and its long-term prospects, Oakley's stock is undervalued and represents an attractive investment at current market prices,'' Jannard concluded.
Recognizing that the company intends to remain active from time-to-time with its previously approved share repurchase program, based on prevailing market conditions, Jannard noted that he will not purchase Oakley common stock in the open market when the company is repurchasing its common stock.
Jannard, who founded Oakley in 1975, currently owns 42,736,800 shares of Oakley common stock. As of June 30, 2004, there were a total of 68,406,644 shares of Oakley common stock outstanding.
