SEC Company Response from REDDY ICE HOLDINGS INC (CIK 0001268984) — Apr 5, 2005
REDDY ICE HOLDINGS INC (CIK 0001268984)
Date: April 5, 2005 · CIK: 0001268984 · Accession: 0001104659-05-015240
AI Filing Summary & Sentiment
File numbers found in text: 333-122751
Referenced dates: March 12, 2005
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CORRESP 1 filename1.htm April 5, 2005 VIA EDGAR TRANSMISSION AND BY HAND Jason Wynn Division of Corporation Finance Mail Stop 0405 Securities and Exchange Commission 450 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20549-0405 Re: Reddy Ice Holdings, Inc. Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-122751) Ladies and Gentlemen: On behalf of Reddy Ice Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”) and pursuant to the provisions of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, we are filing by EDGAR transmission amendment No. 1 to the registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-122751) (“Amendment No. 1”). The registration statement was initially filed on February 11, 2005 (such initial filing, together with Amendment No. 1, being herein referred to as the “Registration Statement”). In addition, this letter sets forth the responses of the Company to the comments raised by the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Staff”) in H. Roger Schwall’s letter dated March 12, 2005 to Mr. Steven J. Janusek. To facilitate your review of Amendment No. 1, this letter keys our responses to your comments and provides any requested supplemental information currently available. Where practicable, we have specifically identified the places where changes were made in Amendment No. 1. Unless otherwise indicated, references in our responses to page numbers refer to the page numbers of the blacklined Amendment No. 1. To expedite your review, we have enclosed with the by-hand copy of this letter five copies of Amendment No. 1, together with the Annexes thereto, marked against the initial filing of the Registration Statement. REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT: Please note that the Company requests confidential treatment pursuant to Rule 83 (17 CFR 200.83) for some portions of responses and supplemental information on the basis that the information is entitled to exemption under the Freedom of Information Act. All information for which confidential treatment is requested has been set forth in Annex B hereto. The version of this letter submitted via EDGAR has Annex B redacted; the by-hand copy includes confidential Annex B. General 1. Comment: Many of our comments apply to disclosure that appears in more than one place. To eliminate the need for us to issue repetitive comments, please make corresponding changes to all affected disclosure, wherever it appears in your document. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has made changes to all affected disclosure that relates to any given comment. The Company has also made a significant effort to reduce repetitive disclosure throughout Amendment No. 1. 2. Comment: We note that you omit information required by Regulation S-K. Revise your filing to provide all information other than that specified by Rule 430A under Regulation C. See pages 6, 25, 62 and 101, for example. Response: The Company is still in the process of consulting with its stockholders and the managing underwriters, as well as observing market conditions. As a result, the Company is not yet able to include certain non-Rule 430A information in Amendment No. 1, such as the appropriate price range, the ratio of the split of the Company’s common stock and some dividend table information. The Company will include all non-Rule 430A information in future filings promptly after making such determinations. 3. Comment: We will need time to review all new disclosure, including any additional proposed artwork or graphics, the intended price range, the use of proceeds, the number of shares to be repurchased and the resulting ownership breakdown, prior to completing our examination. Similarly, we will need time to review all omitted exhibits, including the opinion of counsel. You can expedite the review process by providing all this information and all these documents promptly. We may have additional comments. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company is supplementally providing additional graphics it intends to include on the inside front cover of the prospectus as Annex A hereto. The Company acknowledges that the Staff will need sufficient time to review this additional information prior to any distribution of the preliminary prospectus. As mentioned in the response to Comment #2 above, the Company is continuing to evaluate the appropriate price range and certain other information. 4. Comment: Please provide the estimated per share price range of the offering or supplementally advise us of the proposed price range. You will need to include a definitive price range prior to effectiveness. Response: The Company is still in the process of determining the estimated share price range of the offering and as a result is not yet able to include this information in Amendment No. 1. The Company will supplementally advise you when it determines the estimated price range. The Company acknowledges that it will need to include a definitive price range prior to effectiveness. 5. Comment: We remind you that as stated in Securities Act Release No. 5180, a registrant is “in registration” at least from the time an issuer reaches an undertaking with a broker-dealer to the period of 25-40 days during which dealers must deliver a prospectus. Interviews conducted by your principals during this period may raise Section 5 concerns since they may be selling material. Any selling material outside the statutory prospectus violates the Securities Act unless a final prospectus is delivered prior to or simultaneously with that additional selling material. Please acknowledge the staff’s position in your response. Response: The Company acknowledges the Staff’s position with regard to Securities Act Release No. 5180. 6. Comment: Please ensure that the disclosure on your website is consistent with the disclosure in your prospectus and other filings. For example, we note that the number of manufacturing facilities the company owns or leases and its number of distribution centers stated on the website does not match the numbers stated in the prospectus. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has updated its website so that the disclosure on the website is consistent with the disclosure in Amendment No. 1 and its other filings. 7. Comment: Please update your disclosure with each amendment to the most recent practicable date. Also, provide an updated consent from your independent accountant in each subsequently filed amendment. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has updated the disclosure included in Amendment No. 1 to the most recent practicable date. The Company has provided an updated consent from its independent accountant with Amendment No. 1 and will do so with each subsequently filed amendment. 2 8. Comment: Please eliminate all unnecessary redundancy throughout your prospectus. For example, you repeat much of your discussion of industry overview, competitive strengths and business strategy in the Summary and again on pages 70-76. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has made a significant effort to decrease the length and reduce repetitive disclosure throughout Amendment No. 1, including in the Summary section. Prospectus Cover Page 9. Comment: Provide updated and current disclosure throughout the prospectus. For example, update the status of your application with the New York Stock Exchange. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has updated the disclosure included in Amendment No. 1 to the most recent practicable date, including the Company’s expected NYSE symbol. Prospectus Summary, page 1 10. Comment: Revise to provide a concise and balanced summary of the material information you disclose elsewhere. The following are examples of necessary changes to this section. (a) Eliminate the suggestion that you only “highlight” “some” information. (b) Avoid the use of subjective language, such as “we believe.” (c) If you desire to retain any claims of leadership, briefly explain in context how it was determined and provide us with supplemental support for the claims. (d) Balance the positive aspects of your business with a discussion of the risks and limitations that could harm your business or inhibit your strategic plans. (e) Eliminate repetitive disclosure. For example, you repeat leadership claims and your purported reputation at pages 2 - 4. Where practicable, replace such language with quantifiable data based on objective sources. Unless you can provide objective supplemental support for statements, this type of language and terminology is not appropriate. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has revised the disclosure in the Summary section. (a) The Company has eliminated the suggestion that the Summary highlights some of the information contained elsewhere in the prospectus. (b) Where practicable, the Company has revised the Registration Statement to avoid the use of subjective language. (c) The Company makes the following claims to leadership in the Summary, and advises the Staff supplementally of the following information upon which such claims are based: “We are the largest manufacturer and distributor of packaged ice in the United States.” According to information obtained from publicly available sources, the Company has determined that the four largest manufacturers and distributors in the United States, measured by revenues, are the Company, Arctic Glacier Income Fund (“Arctic Glacier”), Home City Ice Company (“Home City”) and Glacier Ice Company (“Glacier”). Arctic Glacier’s 2004 Annual Report states their 2004 U.S. revenues as C$78.4 million (approximately $64.5 million at current exchange rates). Home City was profiled in a May, 2004 news article (available on their website) as having annual revenues of $62.5 million. Based upon the foregoing and proprietary trade information 3 (described supplementally in confidential Annex B hereto), the Company is confident that no other manufacturer and distributor of packaged ice has revenues in the United States approaching that of the Company’s annual revenues of $285.7 million in 2004. “No other manufacturer and distributor of packaged ice in the United States has the geographic presence, infrastructure or capacity necessary to meet the multi state demands of customers in our markets” Based upon available public information: · Arctic Glacier has U.S. locations in 13 central and northeastern states, with production capacity of approximately 5,100 tons of ice per day (including Canadian locations, which aren’t part of the Company’s markets); and · Home City serves ten states in the Midwest with 21 plants making 3,300 tons of ice per day. As a result of the foregoing and the proprietary trade information described in confidential Annex B hereto, the largest competing ice companies do not have the capacity to compete with the Company’s daily ice manufacturing capacity of over 16,000 tons serving 31 states and the District of Columbia. As discussed above, all of the other packaged ice manufacturers and distributors that compete with the Company are of substantially smaller size and compete with the Company only in individual markets or small numbers of the Company’s markets. (d) The Company has included a discussion of the risks and limitations that could harm its business or inhibit its strategic plans on pages 2 and 3. (e) The Company has deleted repetitive disclosure in the Summary section regarding its claims of industry leadership and reputation. 11. Comment: The disclosures under “Competitive Strengths” and “Business Strategy” are duplications of what is contained on pages 72-73. This section should summarize not repeat later disclosure. The Summary should also be balanced and address any risks associated with those strengths and strategy. Revise accordingly. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has significantly reduced duplicative disclosures under “Competitive Strengths” and “Business Strategy” on page 2 of the Summary. The Company has added discussion of risks associated with those strengths and strategy on pages 2 and 3 in order to balance the summaries of competitive strengths and business strategy. Risk Factors, page 13 12. Comment: All risk factors should be no longer than one or two short paragraphs. Identify the risk, include a cross-reference to more detailed disclosure elsewhere if appropriate, and eliminate all excess detail. Many of your risk factors are too detailed and contain excessive bullet points, for example the one titled “The terms of our new credit facilities . . . .” Where you discuss multiple risks under one caption, break the discussion into separate factors and include appropriate captions for each. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has made revisions throughout the Risk Factors section of Amendment No. 1 to make discussion of risks more concise, cross-reference more detailed disclosure elsewhere and segregate multiple risks. 13. Comment: In a number of places in the risk factor section you use phrases such as “materially adversely affected” or “negatively affect.” Please revise to add disclosure describing and expressing the specific and immediate effects to the investors. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has revised the risk factors titled “You may not receive any dividends . . .”, “We might not have cash in the future to pay dividends . . .”, “Our 4 dividend policy may limit our ability . . .”, “The terms of our new credit facilities . . .”, “Increases in the prices of electricity . . .”, “Our acquisitions may not be successfully integrated . . .”, “We may lose customers’ business . . .”, “Limitations on our ability to utilize our tax assets . . .”, “As a result of being a public company . . .”, and “We will be exposed to risks relating to evaluations of controls . . .”, to add disclosure describing and expressing the specific and immediate effects to the investors of each of the specific risks. 14. Comment: Revise the risk factor subheadings to identify the risk and potential harm concisely. Several captions merely state facts and fail to describe the risk that follows, including without limitation, “Our dividend policy may change,” “We may not be able to utilize our tax assets before they expire” and “Being a public company will increase our expenses and administrative workload.” Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has revised risk factor subheadings on pages 11 through 17. 15. Comment: Other captions do not address all the risks that you present in the risk factor. Revise the caption or break out separate risks into separate risk factors. Examples include the possibility that the Reddy Group notes will not be repurchased in a tender offer mentioned under “The terms of our new credit facilities . . . .” at page 15 and the inability to obtain director and officer liability insurance as discussed in the second full paragraph under “Being a public company . . . .” at page 20. Response: In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company has reviewed and revised the disclosure generally in the Risk Factors section and: · has broken out as a separate risk on page 13 the risks associated with the possibility that not all of the Reddy Group notes will be repurchased in the tender for such notes; and · has split the former “Being a public company...” risk factor into two distinct risk factors relating to (1) the increased burdens of being public (“We will be subject to greater...”) and (2) greater director and officer insurance costs (“Our status as