More Job Cuts in Store for Kodak?

Kodachrome. They give us those nice bright colors. They give us the greens of summers. Makes you think all the world’s a sunny day.

Well everyone has known for years that the move from film photography to digital photography would not be good for Kodak (EK). But after cutting about half their work force in the past four years it looks like still more job cuts may be in the cards for Kodak in the near future. From Bloomberg:

“To see any sort of meaningful turnaround, they have to get costs way more in line with their peers,” Standard & Poor’s equity analyst Erik Kolb said in an interview. “That means cutting jobs, cutting anything wherever they can.”

Kodak sliced its projected 2008 operating profit in half in October and withdrew the forecast altogether in December. The moves have caused some investors and analysts to doubt the success of Chief Executive Officer Antonio Perez’s overhaul that eliminated 28,000 jobs by the time it ended in 2007.

Since Eastman Kodak’s high of a little over $90 per share over a decade ago, the stock now is down about 92% to $7.17 per share. The once great company that once was a part of the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average was removed from that Index in 2004. Despite a significant initiative to move from a film business to a digital business made by the company over the past few years, the question that still lingers is can the company survive even the next few years ahead.

Especially given a bad economy right now, things will be even more difficult for the company which was already facing considerable challenges. Quite a different world than when George Eastman first invented roll film back in 1885.

On a related note, from the NY Times: “Polaroid Fans Try Making New Film for Old Cameras.”

Comments

[Wishingfort...:]

I am an employee at EK....23 years....and the bad management decisions are the reasons for Kodak's demise. They invented the digital camera and gave it away....what dummies.....they move technology to China for a buck....and they still won't make it. I except someday soon, Kodak will be purchased for name recognition only....and their CGC division will be purchased by HP.

Jan 29 06:47 PM