Professional Diversity Network, Inc. Announces Stock Buyback
CHICAGO, Oct. 08, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Professional Diversity Network, Inc. (“PDN”) (NASDAQ:IPDN), a developer and operator of online networks and technologies that provide access to employment opportunities for diverse professionals in the United States, announced today that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback of up to $1.2 million of its outstanding stock. This buyback is set to begin in 2016 and is expected to be funded from the Company’s free cash flow.
The Company has scaled its existing platform for profitable growth under the current capital structure and plans to use its free cash flow to build shareholder value by virtue of this planned buyback. “We made multiple, accretive acquisitions during 2014 with an eye toward being profitable by the end of 2015,” said Jim Kirsch, CEO. Kirsch continued, “Over the past year we have integrated three companies, identified synergies and eliminated redundancies, and continued to manage toward profitability. Our Management and our Board share the belief that our stock is undervalued. As we enter the fourth quarter, our goal is to achieve sustainable positive cash flow from operations. Our previous investments into our business platform position us to grow our revenues without additional or reinvested capital from operations, and, we are therefore committed to maximizing shareholder value by reinvesting our profits into our own stock.”
About Professional Diversity Network, Inc.
Professional Diversity Network, Inc. (PDN) is an Internet software and services company that develops and operates online professional networking communities dedicated to serving diverse professionals in the United States and employers seeking to hire diverse talent. Our subsidiary, National Association of Professional Women (NAPW), is one of the largest, most recognized networking organizations of professional women in the country, spanning more than 200 industries and professions. Through an online platform and our relationship recruitment affinity groups, we provide our employer clients a means to identify and acquire diverse talent and assist them with their efforts to comply with the Equal Employment Opportunity Office of Federal Contract Compliance Program. Our mission is to utilize the collective strength of our affiliate companies, members, partners and unique proprietary platform to be the standard in business diversity recruiting, networking and professional development for women, minorities, veterans, LGBT and disabled persons globally.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements regarding the future based on our current expectations, forecasts, beliefs, intentions, strategies and assumptions. Forward-looking statements can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," and "would" or similar words. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and our actual results may differ materially from those stated or implied in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: failure to realize synergies and other financial benefits from mergers and acquisitions within expected time frames, including increases in expected costs or difficulties related to integration of merger and acquisition partners; inability to identify and successfully negotiate and complete additional combinations with potential merger or acquisition partners or to successfully integrate such businesses, including our ability to realize the benefits and cost savings from, and limit any unexpected liabilities acquired as a result of, any such business combinations; our limited operating history in a new and unproven market; increasing competition in the market for online professional networks; our ability to comply with increasing governmental regulation and other legal obligations related to privacy; our ability to adapt to changing technologies and social trends and preferences; our ability to attract and retain a sales and marketing team, management and other key personnel and the ability of that team to execute on the Company’s business strategies and plans; our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual property protection for our intellectual property; any future litigation regarding our business, including intellectual property claims; and the risk factors disclosed in our Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 31, 2015 and any subsequent filings made by us with the SEC. Forward-looking statements in this release are based on information available to us as of the date hereof and we assume no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 31, 2015, together with this press release are available on our website, www.prodivnet.com.
CONTACT: Professional Diversity Network, Inc. David Mecklenburger, CFO (312) 614-0944 dmecklenburger@prodivnet.com
Released October 8, 2015