By just about any measure, Fleming's numbers have been erratic and trending downward in recent years and Fleming's equity values have plunged toward the basement.
rading at about $18 and its 52-week high at that time was also about $20.
All of which raises the question: What's needed to restore Wall Street's view of Fleming as a good place to put investors' money?
Ed Comeau, a securities analyst with Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette, New York, told SN that Fleming is really "off the radar screen of most investors right now."
And, he said, it's going to take time to correct that situation: "It's going to take a while for the investment community to be convinced that Fleming is a solid and profitable business that will grow. The bigger problem is that the turnaround is high risk and it will take a long time to play out. That means investors really have plenty of time to watch and see how it's working. No one is going to miss out by not investing now."
Indeed, Mark S. Hansen, chairman and chief executive officer, acknowledges that it's going to take time and a solid demonstration of success to show the Street -- a highly skeptical constituency -- that the company is turning around.
"The expectation [of the Street] is that it will take us 24 months to get through this restructuring process and another 36 months to return the company to historical levels of profitability and performance," Hansen said.
Asked if he agreed with that outlook, he said that every effort will be made to beat the Street's timetable: "It's never good to promise more than you can deliver, but the reality is we're doing everything we can to accelerate that."
He also said that, in any case, a better understanding of the entire food-wholesaling industry needs to be taught to the Street.
"I think everyone on Wall Street grew up in Missouri. They say, 'show me.' And that's absolutely appropriate. They must invest where they get good returns, and Wall Street misunderstands our industry. So one of our responsibilities is to spend time with Wall Street to make sure they better understand the industry at large.
"It's premature to assume the demise of third-party distribution, and there may not be a demise of it at all. It's an evolving business model and the chatter being heard about self-distributing chains overwhelming the world needs a fresher cut. We need to build a different business case for our whole industry and about where our business falls on that backdrop."
