Palm Inc. today announced that the Palm Board of Directors has approved a reverse stock split and established a ratio of 1-for-20. As a result of the reverse stock split, every 20 shares of Palm common stock will be combined into one share of Palm common stock.
“The decision made by Palm’s Board of Directors to complete the planned reverse stock split in October 2002 is timely,” said Eric Benhamou, Palm chairman and chief executive officer. “It paves the way for the planned separation of our PalmSource subsidiary. It adjusts Palm’s capitalisation structure to appropriate levels. And it enables us to attract new investors. Meanwhile, the handheld industry is moving to a new growth phase, Palm’s market share is trending up, and we are entering the most comprehensive new product cycle in Palm’s history. I am convinced that this decision, combined with continued strong execution by Palm’s management team, will contribute to shareholder value creation.”