SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
_________________________
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OF 15(d) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) December 18, 1998
THE ANDERSONS, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
OHIO 34-1562374
(State or other jurisdiction of (I.R.S. Employer
incorporation or organization) Identification No.)
480 W. Dussel Drive, Maumee, Ohio 43537
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (419) 893-5050
Item 5:
The following press release was issued on December 18, 1998:
The Andersons, Inc.
480 W. Dussel Drive Maumee, Ohio 43537
AT THE COMPANY: AT THE FINANCIAL RELATIONS BOARD:
Gary Smith Marilyn Windsor Lisa Fortuna
419-891-6417 312-640-6692 312-640-6779
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1998
THE ANDERSONS NAMES MIKE ANDERSON CEO, INCREASES DIVIDEND 25%
MAUMEE, OHIO, DECEMBER 18, 1998-The board of directors of
The Andersons, Inc. (Nasdaq: ANDE) today named Michael J. (Mike) Anderson
president and chief executive officer of the company, effective Jan. 1, 1999.
Richard P. (Dick) Anderson, currently chairman and chief executive officer,
will continue as chairman.
The company also announced it increased its cash dividend to five cents per
share, up from four cents.
Mike, 47, has been president and chief operating officer of the company since
September 1996. He will be in charge of strategic planning while continuing to
have responsibility for day-to-day operations. There are no plans to name a
chief operating officer to succeed him.
The nephew of Dick Anderson, Mike graduated with his Master's in management
from Northwestern University in 1975. From 1975 to 1978 he was an auditor for
Arthur Young & Co., earning his CPA in 1976.
Mike has had hands-on experience in two of the company's three business
groups. He began his career with The Andersons in 1978, holding various
positions in the company's largest business unit, the Agriculture Group. From
grain buyer he advanced to grain purchasing manager, Maumee Grain Division
manager, and vice president and general manager of the Grain Group. From 1994
to 1996 he was vice president and general manager of the Retail Group.
Mike is on the board of directors of The Andersons, Inc. and Interstate
Bakeries Corp. (NYSE: IBC) and the advisory board of Findley Davies, Inc.
Active in community affairs, he is a trustee and officer of the YMCA of
Greater Toledo and sits on the advisory committee of St. Patrick's of
Heatherdowns Church and the advisory board of the University of Toledo Family
Business Center. He was the 1998 campaign chairman for the United Way of
Greater Toledo.
"I look forward to continuing the steady growth and success this company has
achieved in the 51 years since it was founded by my grandfather," Mike said.
"The board, the management team, and I are committed to increase shareholder
value by building on our considerable strengths, pursuing development
opportunities and achieving the aggressive earnings goals that we have
established."
Dick Anderson, 69, has been with The Andersons since his father, Harold,
founded it in 1947. Starting as a crew boss on construction of the first
elevator in Maumee, Ohio, Dick worked his way up through the company. He was
named managing partner in 1978 and president and chief executive officer in
1986. In 1996, he was named chairman and chief executive officer.
Dick has presided over a period of extraordinary growth for the company.
Under his leadership, grain capacity has doubled, to 80 million bushels, and
the retail business has grown from one small store in Maumee to six throughout
Ohio. Dick also is credited with starting the company's agricultural
fertilizer business. Today, The Andersons has 18 wholesale fertilizer
operations in the eastern Corn Belt with dry and liquid fertilizer storage
capacity of more than 550,000 tons. The company is a full-line supplier of
nitrogen, phosphate, potassium and compounded fertilizer products-buying,
transporting, storing, mixing, bagging and marketing more than 1 million tons
of fertilizer materials to agricultural dealers every year.
Dick has served on numerous corporate boards including Toledo Edison,
Trustcorp Inc., First Mississippi Corp., Solar Cells Inc., N-Viro
International Corp.(Nasdaq: NVIC) and ChemFirst Inc. (NYSE: CEM). In
addition, he has served as board member and chairman of the following civic
and charitable organizations: Toledo Area Council Boy Scouts of America,
Public Broadcasting Foundation of Northwest Ohio, Lucas County Children
Services Board, St. Luke's Hospital, The University of Toledo Foundation and
The Toledo Museum of Art.
"I have great confidence in our new management team. I will continue to be
involved in strategic issues, acting as an adviser to Mike and serving as a
liaison between the board and management," Dick said.
Also today, the directors announced an increased cash dividend of five cents
per share, payable Jan. 21, 1999, to shareholders of record on Jan. 4, 1999.
The previous cash dividend was four cents per share. The cash dividend is the
company's ninth since its listing on Nasdaq on Feb. 20, 1996.
Mike Anderson stated that, "We are very pleased to increase our cash dividend
for the third consecutive year. Because of The Andersons' strong internal
cash generation, we are confident we can increase our cash dividend while
maintaining an aggressive capital investment program for 1999."
Future cash dividends will be determined by company performance and must be
approved by the board of directors.
There are approximately 8 million common shares outstanding.
The Andersons, Inc. is a respected leader and dominant regional player in the
grain industry. This strong position in its basic business has allowed the
company to diversify into other agribusiness operations, several processing
and manufacturing businesses, and general merchandise retailing. The company
has been in operation since 1947.
This release contains forward-looking statements, including statements with
respect to anticipated revenue growth, adequacy of cash flows and
profitability. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially, including, without limitation,
economic and weather conditions in agriculture, economic conditions and
competition in its retail stores' markets, risks associated with acquisitions,
and the risk factors set forth from time to time in the company's filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission.
For further information regarding The Andersons free of charge via fax dial
1-800-PRO-INFO and enter company code "ANDE."
The Andersons, Inc. can be reached on the Internet at www.andersonsinc.com
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
The Andersons, Inc.
Date December 30, 1998 By /s/Richard P. Anderson
Richard P. Anderson
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
