• 01
  • April
    2011

The Tampa Bay Business Journal reports that Largo-based GeoPharma Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida. This filing comes on the heels of a recent valuation which revealed the company to have debts that could be estimated as high as 50 times the valuation of assets held by the company.

GeoPharma had operated publicly under the company name Innovative Health Products since the year 2000 and had since experienced growth largely through acquisitions. In 2004, their stock rose abruptly upon news that a dietary supplement they produced had been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The company's last big acquisition was in 2007, having not seen positive growth since. Like many companies, GeoPharma was adversely affected by the economic downturn of late. Recently, the Tampa Bay area business was forced to restructure debt, lay off workers and sell a manufacturing subsidiary as well as their headquarters building just to stay afloat. The restructuring and recapitalization attempt proved insufficient. The situation further escalated this past summer when they were found to be in violation of the Fair Labor Standards act and ordered to pay over a million dollars in back wages to a large group of their employees. It was merely insult to injury when the company was delisted by NASDAQ this past June.

GeoPharma estimates they may have upwards of 1,000 creditors to date, yet expects funds to become available to unsecured creditors through their Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. Many board members and top executives resigned in the last few months leading up to the bankruptcy filing.

Sources:

  • Tampa Bay Business Journal "GeoPharma files for bankruptcy" by Margie Manning, 3/25/11
  • TampaBay.com "Largo's GeoPharma files for bankruptcy reorganization" by Jeff Harrington, 3/24/11