Looming debt makes future of Xerox a question mark

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Feb 19, 2001 by Riva D. Atlas N.Y. Times News Service

That sale, expected to be announced this quarter by the company, which is based in Stamford, Conn., could yield up to $1.5 billion, estimated Jonathan Rosenzweig, an equity analyst at Salomon Smith Barney.

Some contrarian investors are willing to buy shares of Xerox, confident that the cash the company will receive from its anticipated asset sales will make the banks comfortable enough to refinance the loan.

"I think it's in the banks' best interest to make sure this company doesn't go bankrupt," said Robin Kollannur, a portfolio manager with Brandes Investment Partners, a money manager that invests in value stocks and has accumulated a 4.5 percent stake in Xerox since last fall. "The banks have to book that loan on their balance sheets," he said, and the institutions would rather not write down the value of their Xerox loans. Still, Kollannur said, "Xerox has to execute. That's what everyone is waiting for."