Electric vehicle maker Cenntro Inc., which ended its Jacksonville operations after being served with two eviction actions in the spring, has reached settlements on both lawsuits.
New Jersey-based Cenntro announced big plans in 2021 to open its first U.S. plant in Jacksonville for production of its commercial electronic vehicles.
After opening that plant on the Westside in 2023, it also opened a vehicle showroom on the Southside.
However, EastGroup Properties LP filed a summons March 18 to evict the company from its showroom at 11840 Beach Blvd.
Then BRI 2240 North Lane Avenue LLC filed suit April 22 to evict Cenntro from its 100,000-square-foot plant at 2240 Lane Ave. N. in the Lane Industrial Park.
Cenntro’s quarterly report filed Nov. 12 with the Securities and Exchange Commission said it reached a settlement agreement and general release of all claims on the lawsuit filed by EastGroup, and that the matter is closed.
An Oct. 22 filing in the 4th Judicial Circuit Court said EastGroup gave notice it dismissed the action with prejudice.
The BRI lawsuit remains open but a Nov. 8 court filing said the parties have reached a settlement agreement in principle.
“As of the date of this report, Cenntro has vacated the premises, the case remains open and is in the final stages of negotiating settlement between the parties,” Cenntro said in its Nov. 12 SEC filing.
Cenntro has never given a reason why it left Jacksonville, but the company announced in July it was winding down operations in Jacksonville as it opened a new plant in California. It also has a plant in New Jersey.
When the company announced its decision in late 2021 to open its first U.S. plant in Jacksonville, it said the facility would support annual production levels of more than 50,000 vehicles within four years.
However, Cenntro’s third-quarter report said it sold 1,082 electric commercial vehicles in the first nine months of 2024.
Cenntro did increase production in the third quarter, with revenue tripling to $16.7 million.
The company reported a net loss of $27.4 million on revenue of $28.4 million in the first nine months of this year.
Tapestry Inc. agreed in August 2023 to a merger that would almost double the company’s size, so you might think it was a disappointment when it was forced to call off the $8.5 billion deal because of antitrust issues.
However, Tapestry’s stock has been soaring since the U.S. Federal Trade Commission successfully blocked the proposed acquisition of Capri Holdings Ltd.
Tapestry operates the Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman fashion and accessories brands and Capri operates the Versace, Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors brands.
The FTC filed suit to stop the deal in April, citing particular concern about the merged company’s potential dominance of the handbag market. A federal judge ruled in favor of the FTC last month.
That ruling sent Tapestry’s stock up $6 to $50.47 on Oct. 24.
Tapestry and Capri said they would appeal the court ruling but Nov. 14, they announced a mutual termination of the merger agreement. That sent Tapestry’s stock up another $7.23 to a high of $58.49, doubling Tapestry’s stock price of a year ago.
Meanwhile, Capri’s stock dropped in half from $41.81 before the court ruling to a recent low of $19.68.
“Although we saw value in a combination, Tapestry investors have generally wanted it to break,” Morningstar analyst David Swartz said in a research note.
“For one, Capri’s results have weakened since it was announced. For another, the end of the deal frees up significant amounts of capital that will be returned to shareholders,” he said.
Coach is Tapestry’s main brand. The company handles all North American distribution for Coach products from a 1.05 million-square-foot warehouse at Jacksonville International Tradeport near Jacksonville International Airport.
Tapestry said it had 430 employees at the distribution center plus 200 temporary employees when the merger was announced.
Swartz said Coach is performing well.
“The firm has turned Coach around through store closures, restrictions on discounting, and increased e-commerce, the last of which took off during the pandemic,” he said.
“The brand is a leader in the attractive handbag category and consistently generates gross margins above 70%. Further, we expect growth in complementary categories like footwear and fashion.”
Tapestry reported sales of $1.51 billion in its first quarter ended Sept. 28, including $1.17 billion in sales from Coach.
After listing a Jacksonville address in official filings for four months, PureCycle Technologies Inc. now lists its headquarters office back in Orlando.
The company, which is developing a process to purify recycled plastic products, began listing an office at 4651 Salisbury Road in June as its principal office in its SEC filings.
That address near Butler Boulevard and Interstate 95 is the Quadrant at Southpoint I building.
But starting with an Oct. 28 filing, PureCycle now lists its principal address as an Orlando office, where it was previously headquartered.
Regardless of the headquarters address, most of the company’s operations are conducted at a plant in Ironton, Ohio, where it is working to commercialize its technology.
PureCycle says in news releases the technology “is designed to transform polypropylene plastic waste (designated as No. 5 plastic) into a continuously renewable resource.”
PureCycle reported no revenue in the first nine months of this year but CEO Dustin Olson said in a Nov. 7 news release “we are seeing strong interest in our product by leading companies from several market channels and plan to increase production to meet those needs. The Company believes this should lead to meaningful sales going into 2025.”
Jacksonville-based ParkerVision Inc., another company that has developed technology but has no revenue, reported a third-quarter net loss of $10.8 million, or 12 cents a share.
The developer of wireless technology said most of the loss resulted from a $9.7 million noncash charge for a change in value of the company’s contingent payment obligations.
ParkerVision has had products in the past but its current focus is a series of lawsuits against major telecommunications product manufacturers, alleging they are illegally using ParkerVision’s patented technology.
The company said in a Nov. 13 news release it has 13 patent infringement cases pending against seven defendants, including four scheduled for jury trials in federal court in Texas in 2025.
Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported third-quarter sales at its Firehouse Subs subsidiary fell 1.3% to $301 million, with sales at restaurants open for more than one year dropping 4.8%.
Toronto-based RBI, which also owns the Burger King, Popeyes and Tim Hortons chains, acquired Jacksonville-based Firehouse in December 2021.
RBI continues growing the Firehouse chain, adding a net total of 49 stores in the past year to bring the total to 1,300 at the end of the third quarter.
Firehouse’s adjusted operating income rose by $2 million to $12 million in the quarter, due mainly to lower compensation-related expenses.
Raymond James analyst David Hicks downgraded his rating on Jacksonville-based trucking company Landstar System Inc. with the stock trading at high valuation levels relative to earnings.
“We are downgrading shares of Landstar to Market Perform (from Outperform) as valuation is at record levels, cost dynamics likely hamper the return of all-important BCOs to the Landstar platform, and shares near our price target,” Hicks said in a research note.
BCOs are business capacity owners, Landstar’s term for its drivers who own their own trucks and haul freight on a contract basis.
Hicks thinks BCOs will be slow to return to Landstar under current cost dynamics in the trucking industry.
Landstar’s stock was trading at $187.41 at the time of his Nov. 13 report, close to his price target of $189.
Hicks said the stock reached a level of 30 times its next 12 months earnings for the first time in company history, providing less likelihood of price gains.
LFTD Partners Inc. reported Nov. 15 that third-quarter revenue fell 34% to $8.7 million and the company had a net loss of $194,399, reversing a profit in last year’s third quarter.
Jacksonville-based LFTD manufactures and sells hemp-derived and other psychoactive products, mainly through a Kenosha, Wisconsin, subsidiary called Lifted Made.
The company’s quarterly report filed with the SEC said several factors caused sales to fall, including tighter regulation of hemp-derived products in some states and increased competition in the marketplace.
Eskola Roofing & Waterproofing said Nov. 5 it acquired three companies, including Jacksonville-based BBG Contracting Group.
BBG, founded in 1997, provides commercial roofing, restoration and maintenance services.
Morristown, Tennessee-based Eskola said the acquisition enhances its expansion into Florida.
Eskola said it now operates 22 locations in 11 states after also acquiring companies based in Charleston, South Carolina and New Mexico.
Terms of the deals were not announced.
Minneapolis-based AVI Systems announced Nov. 11 it agreed to acquire CCS Southeast, a Jacksonville-based company that provides and supports audiovisual systems.
AVI said CCS employees will become employees of AVI when the deal closes Dec. 2, and CCS Chief Executive John Doster will run the Jacksonville office as area vice president for AVI.
The addition of CCS will give AVI more than 1,200 employees in 40 U.S. locations.
Terms of the deal were not announced.