CHARLOTTE, Mich., April 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ —
Spartan Motors, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPAR) today announced its board of directors has
authorized the repurchase of up to 500,000 shares, or approximately 4 percent,
of the Company’s outstanding common stock.
The Charlotte, Mich.-based manufacturer of custom motorhome chassis, fire
truck chassis and emergency-rescue vehicles said the buyback authorization
allows the Company to purchase common stock in open-market transactions over
the next 12 months. Spartan Motors reported 12,129,477 weighted average
common shares issued and outstanding as of February 18, 2003.
“When we look at the long-term strength of our core markets, the operating
improvements we made in 2002 and our 2003 strategic initiatives, the board and
senior management team believe Spartan Motors common stock is a wise
investment,” said John Sztykiel, chief executive officer. “We believe our
stock remains undervalued despite the record earnings, improved operations and
strong cash flow generated in 2002, as well as the prospects for the future.”
About Spartan Motors
Spartan Motors, Inc. (theshyftgroup.com ) designs, engineers and
manufactures custom chassis and vehicles for the recreational vehicle, fire
truck, ambulance and emergency-rescue markets. The company’s brand names —
Spartan®, Crimson Fire® and Road Rescue® — are known in their market
niches for quality, value, service and being the first to market with
innovative products. Spartan Motors employs more than 750 at facilities in
Michigan, South Dakota, Alabama, Minnesota and South Carolina and is publicly
traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the ticker symbol SPAR.
The statements contained in this news release include certain predictions
and projections that may be considered “forward-looking statements” by the
securities laws. These forward-looking statements are identifiable by words
or phrases indicating that the Company or management “expects” or “believes”
that a particular result may occur, or similar statement. These statements
involve many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially, including but not limited to economic, competitive, governmental
and technological factors affecting the Company’s operations, markets,
products, services and prices. Additional information about these and other
factors that may adversely affect these forward-looking statements are
contained in the Company’s reports and filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise
any forward-looking statements to reflect developments or information obtained
after the date of this news release.