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InterNet Bankruptcy Library - News for October 23, 1996






Bankruptcy News For October 23, 1996



  1. Toastmaster Reports Third Quarter 1996 Results

  2. Cambridge Biotech Corporation Reorganization Consummated, Sold to bioMerieux Vitek, Inc.




Toastmaster Reports Third Quarter 1996 Results


COLUMBIA, Mo., Oct. 23, 1996 - Toastmaster Inc. (NYSE:TM), manufacturer of electrical consumer
appliances and time pieces, today reported relatively unchanged net income on decreased sales for the
quarter ended September 30, 1996. Sales for the quarter ended September 30 decreased 12.5% to $49.3
million in 1996 from $56.4 million in 1995. Net income for the three months ended September 30, 1996
was $950 thousand or $.13 per share, compared to net income of $962 thousand or $.13 per share for
the three months ended September 30, 1995.


Sales for the nine months ended September 30 decreased 12.1% to $108.7 million in 1996 from $123.7
million in 1995. Net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 1996 was $2.0 million or $.27 per
share, compared to a net loss of $738 thousand or $.10 per share for the nine months ended September
30, 1995.


The Company stated, "Lower raw material prices during the third quarter of 1996 were offset by the
effect of lower sales in the third quarter of 1996 and a $.05 per share bad debt expense related to the
bankruptcy filing of Best Products. A decline in breadmaker shipments was the primary reason for the
sales decrease due to the anticipated maturation of that product. Revenues from breadmakers are
expected to decline during the fourth quarter of 1996 when compared to the fourth quarter of 1995."


The Company is in the process of evaluating a restructuring of its product lines and operations with a
view to improving future financial performance. This broad ranging review is focusing on a variety of
factors driving the Company's business, including those affecting gross profit margins, product
innovation, growth potential and operating and financing costs. The Company believes that a
fundamental reassessment of this sort is warranted by continuing evolution in the retail environment and
buying patterns, the maturation of certain products and a desire to improve its competitive posture as
well as its profitability. These strategic initiatives may include the disposition of certain products or
segments of the Company's business as well as the acquisition of complementary products or businesses.


Certain members of the Company's management include the Company's largest shareholders and they
share the interests of the other shareholders in moving this process forward as expeditiously as is
prudent. It is currently anticipated that this restructuring analysis and accompanying recommendations
will be presented to the Company's Board of Directors by the end of the year. Accordingly, no further
details will be announced until the Board has had an opportunity to consider this information and
determine a future course of action.


Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this news release are
forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including the nature, scope and
effectiveness of any restructuring that may emerge from this process, the timely availability and
acceptance of new products and product enhancements, the effect of economic conditions and
competition on demand and pricing for the Company's products, and the other risks and uncertainties
detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-Q for the
quarter ended June 30, 1996. The Company's actual results of operations, financial condition and
business may vary materially from those contemplated by such forward looking statements.


                                   TOASTMASTER INC.
                          Financial Summary and Comparisons
                       (dollars in thousands, except per share)
        

                                                       Three Month Results
                                                   For the Quarter ended
        September 30,
        

                                                        1996          1995
        

         Net sales                                    $49,321       $56,356
         Net income                                      $950          $962
         Net income per share                            $.13          $.13
         Weighted average common and common equivalent
          shares, outstanding (in thousands)            7,538         7,553
        

                                                         Nine Month Results
                                                    For the Period ended
        September 30,
        

                                                         1996          1995
        

         Net sales                                     $108,694      $123,711
         Net (loss)                                     $(2,016)        $(738)
         Net (loss) per share                             $(.27)        $(.10)
         Weighted average common and common equivalent
          shares, outstanding (in thousands)              7,538         7,564
        

Toastmaster Inc., with headquarters in Columbia, Mo., designs, manufactures, markets and services a
wide array of electrical consumer appliances and time pieces under the brand names of Toastmaster(R)
and Ingraham(R). For further information, please contact John E. Thompson, executive vice president,
Toastmaster Inc., 1801 North Stadium Blvd., Columbia, MO 65202. The telephone number is
573-445-8666.


SOURCE Toastmaster Inc./CONTACT: John E. Thompson of Toastmaster Inc., 573-445-8666/(TM)




Cambridge Biotech Corporation Reorganization Consummated, Sold to bioMerieux Vitek, Inc.


WORCESTER, Mass., Oct. 23, 1996 - Cambridge Biotech Corporation (NASD-OTC-Bulletin-Board:
CBCXQ) reported today that it has consummated its plan of reorganization under Chapter 11 and that it
has been sold to bioMerieux Vitek, Inc., for $5.85 million in net cash. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of
bioMerieux, CBC will continue to operate its retroviral diagnostic business which principally focuses
on the development, manufacture and sale of diagnostic kits for use in the diagnosis of diseases caused
by retroviruses. The retroviral business includes manufacturing operations in Rockville, Maryland, with
approximately 70 employees, inventory, equipment, and intellectual property including CBC's patented
CBre3 antigen for detection of HIV-1 as well as 38 other licenses and sublicenses. Cambridge Biotech
Corporation filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code on July 7, 1994.


Prior to closing the sale, CBC transferred its therapeutic assets to a newly formed company, Aquila
Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. As part of the reorganization plan, CBC shares will be exchanged for shares in
Aquila. As a result of the exchange, CBC has ceased trading. Aquila is expected to trade on the NASD
National Market System under the symbol AQLA.


Aquila is developing and commercializing products which stimulate the immune system for use in
treating certain infectious diseases and specific cancers. The therapeutic products include the
Stimulon(TM) family of adjuvants, the most advanced of which, QS-21, is in clinical development
through corporate and academic partners and in Aquila's own proprietary products.


Distributions to CBC's creditors, class action plaintiffs, and former CBC shareholders under the
reorganization plan have commenced. Unsecured creditors who elected to receive cash will receive
cash payments equal to 51 percent of their claims. Other unsecured creditors will receive shares of
Aquila common stock of a value (at $9.50 per share) equal to 100 percent of their claims. Under a
previously announced settlement agreement relating to a shareholder class action, the settlement class
will receive 1.25 million shares of Aquila common stock representing 25 percent of the equity of
Aquila. In addition, Aquila shares will be distributed to employees under the court approved incentive
plan to retain key employees during the Chapter 11 reorganization.


Statements in this release which relate to plans and objectives of management for future operations of
CBC, Aquila, or bioMerieux or which otherwise relate to future performance are forward looking
statements. Actual results may differ from those projected as a result of product demand, pricing, market
acceptance, economic conditions, intellectual property issues, competitive products, risks in product
and technology development, and other risks identified in CBC's Securities and Exchange Commission
filings.


Aquila Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., is a therapeutics biotechnology company located in Worcester,
Massachusetts. The Company is developing and commercializing products which stimulate the immune
system for use in treating and preventing certain infectious diseases and specific cancers. Aquila's
proprietary products include a feline leukemia vaccine currently on the market, and in development
human vaccines for pneumococcal infections, malaria and tick borne diseases, and animal vaccines for
bovine mastitis and canine Lyme disease. These products incorporate Aquila's Stimulon(TM) adjuvants,
which are also included in products under development by the Company's six corporate partners.


bioMerieux Vitek is part of bioMerieux, an international biotechnology company group based in France,
dedicated to in vitro diagnostics, with a special focus on infectious disease. bioMerieux Vitek located in
Saint Louis, Missouri, and Rockland, Massachusetts, develops, manufactures, and markets reagents and
automated systems designed for medical analysis as well as for industrial microbiological controls. The
bioMerieux group ranks among the top 12 corporations worldwide in biological diagnostics and
maintains a global commitment to healthcare with international markets accounting for 70% of its
business.


SOURCE Cambridge Biotech Corporation -0- 10/23/96 /CONTACT: Alison Taunton-Rigby, Ph.D.,
President, CEO of Aquila Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., 508-797-5777, or Robert Gottlieb, Senior Vice
President of Feinstein Partners, Inc., 617-577-8110, or Philippe A. Archinard, President of bioMerieux
Vitek, Inc., 314-731-7411/ (CBCXQ)