Future unknown for Hawaiian stock

By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer

It was unclear yesterday what will happen to shares of stock for Hawaiian Airlines' parent company Hawaiian Holdings Inc., for which trading has been halted.

Hawaiian executives are scheduled to hold a conference call with American Stock Exchange officials Monday to determine the future of the stock, which will continue to have value but could be delisted by the exchange and traded on a smaller market.

"The stock will ultimately continue to trade and be subject to market pressures," said Sandi Sternberg, a Hawaiian spokeswoman.

Sternberg said Hawaiian Holdings was not included in the airline's bankruptcy filing because the company had no liabilities.

Hawaiian Airlines formed the Delaware-based holding company last August to take advantage of Delaware's flexible corporate laws. Hawaiian Airlines is the only subsidiary of Hawaiian Holdings.

Hawaiian Holdings is owned mostly by institutional investors and company insiders, who have a roughly 80 percent stake in the company but are not creditors in the bankruptcy. Airline Investors Partnership, a company controlled by John Adams, Hawaiian's chairman and chief executive, owns more than 50.9 percent of Hawaiian Holdings.

Company shares last traded at $1.50. Shares have traded as high as $4 in the last 52 weeks and hit a 52-week low of $1.01 March 11.