Celadon Group

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Celadon Group, Inc.
TypePublic
OTC Pink: CGIP
IndustryTransport and Logistics
FoundedMay 1985
FoundersStephen Russell
FateBankrupt
Headquarters
Indianapolis, Indiana[1]
,
United States
Area served
North America
Key people
Paul Svindland (CEO)
Jon Russell (COO)
Thom Albrecht (CFO)
Revenue Increase US$1.065 billion (2016)[1]
Decrease US$24.844 million (2016)[1]
Total assets Decrease US$1.103 billion (2016)[1]
Total equity Increase US$381.015 million (2016)[1]
Subsidiaries
  • Celadon Logistics (until 2019)
  • Celadon Trucking Services (until 2019)
  • Hyndman Transport (until 2019)
  • Jaguar Transportation (until 2019)
  • Taylor Express (2015-2020)
Websitewww.celadontrucking.com

Celadon Group, Inc. was a truckload shipping company located in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. It was one of the ten largest truckload carriers in North America.[citation needed] On December 8, 2019, Celadon Group, Inc. and 25 affiliates filed for bankruptcy protection with the intent to fully dissolve the business. Primary business unit Celadon Trucking as well as two subsidiaries, Jaguar Transportation and Hyndman Transport, were shut down in December 2019[2] while the final subsidiary, Taylor Express, continued operating and was sold in January 2020 to White Willow Holdings.[3]

History[]

Celadon was founded in 1985 and employed over 4,000 individuals.[citation needed]

In 2015, the company acquired Taylor Express, a Hope Mills, North Carolina trucking company founded in 1987 for $43 million.[3]

On May 1, 2017 the company announced that COO Eric Meek had resigned after auditor BKD, LLP had determined that the financial statements for the 2016 fiscal year “should not be relied upon.” On May 8, the New York Stock Exchange informed the company that it had failed to meet the exchange's listing standard and the company's stock could be delisted in six months. The noncompliant financials put Celadon into default with its lenders. The company reached a new credit deal with Bank of America on July 3 after agreeing to a host of operating and reporting restrictions. CEO Paul Will announced his retirement on July 13.

In April, 2018, the New York Stock Exchange suspended trading the stock of Celadon and moved to remove the company's stock listing after an internal investigation had identified accounting errors that required it to restate financial results dating back to 2014.[4] Subsequently, it was found that the errors were the result of a series of trades of aging and unused trucks using invoices with deliberately inflated values to intentionally hide significant losses from its investors.[citation needed]

In April 2019, Celadon sold its logistics division, Celadon Logistics, to TA Services, a Mansfield, Texas-based division of PS Logistics. Celadon Logistics would run independently for the first 6 months then be folded into TA Logistics.[5][6]

On April 25, 2019, it was announced that Celadon Group Inc. had agreed to pay total restitution of $42.2 million as a part of its deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) for filing materially false and misleading statements to investors and falsifying books, records and accounts.[7]

On May 9, 2019, the SEC charged the former President of Quality Companies, LLC, a former subsidiary of Indianapolis-based Celadon Group Inc., with an accounting fraud that allowed Celadon to avoid disclosing substantial losses and misrepresent its financial condition.[8]

On December 5, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged former Celadon president and chief operating officer William Eric Meek and former chief financial officer Bobby Peavler of Celadon with accounting fraud. In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana and the U.S. Department of Justice, Fraud Section jointly announced that Williams had pled guilty to related criminal charges.[9]

Bankruptcy[]

On December 8, 2019, Celadon Group, Inc. and 25 affiliates filed bankruptcy in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in October 2019, the company had 2,771 trucks and 2,553 drivers, and was listed as the 38th largest carrier in North America.[10] Celadon sent messages to the drivers (by ELD messaging) that the company was closing and that everyone that delivered loads and followed directions to return equipment would be compensated.[11]

The company received $165 million from the sale of 49.9% of the company to Luminus Management four months before filing. The trucking company was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in 2017, for failure to disclose quarterly and annual reports as required by SEC, and along with a poor trucking market as well as the legal issues, that included a $42.2 million fine by the U.S. Department of Justice, made securing more funding impossible.[10]

The court, in a first stage bankruptcy plan, authorized the use of $5.4 million of an $8.2 million loan to pay employees. The closing also includes Hyndman Transport, that ends 82 years of operation, and Jaguar Transportation,[10] leaving Taylor Express in Hope Mills, North Carolina as the only operating business in the group.[2] Taylor was sold to White Willow Holdings of Newfields, New Hampshire in January 2020 for $14.5 million, a substantial discount off the $43 million Celadon paid for Taylor in 2015.[3]

In March 2020, Celadon auctioned off assets from the company headquarters and driver dorms as part of their bankruptcy agreement.[12]

Subsidiaries[]

  • Celadon Trucking Services
  • Hyndman Transport
  • Jaguar Transportation
  • Taylor Express

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Celadon Group, Inc. 2016 Form 10-K Annual Report. sec.gov
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Federal Judge Approves First Stage of Celadon Bankruptcy Plan". Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c Ronan, Dan (24 January 2020). "Celadon Reaches Deal to Sell Taylor Express for $14.5 Million". Transport Topics. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Celadon Stock Trading Halted".
  5. ^ Huff, Aaron (15 April 2019). "Celadon Group sells TA Services its logistics division". Commercial Carrier Journal. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  6. ^ "TA Services Acquires Logistics Arm of Celadon Group". Truckinginfo. Heavy Duty Trucking. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Celadon Group, Inc. Enters into Corporate Resolution for Securities Fraud and Agrees to Pay $42.2 Million in Restitution". justice.gov. April 25, 2019. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  8. ^ "SEC Charges Former Executive of Indianapolis-Based Truckload Freight Company with Accounting Fraud".
  9. ^ "SEC Charges Trucking Executives With Accounting Fraud". SEC.gov. December 5, 2019. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Bankrupt Celadon's Mexican carrier Jaguar Transportation reportedly halts services". 2019-12-12. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  11. ^ "Celadon Group makes bankruptcy official, shuts down after 34 years". Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  12. ^ Ashley (2020-03-03). "Defunct Celadon places company HQ and driver dorm assets up for auction". CDLLife. Retrieved 2020-03-04.

External links[]

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