ATNG, Inc. (fka ATNG)

[charltuna]

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. Seeks Removal From Berlin-Bremen Stock Exchange
7/8/2004 8:00:00 AM

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/newsfinder/newsArticles.asp?guid=%7B9A62D16D%2D9F64%2D40E6%2D946B%2D....


JACKSON, Miss., Jul 8, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (CALM) today announced that it has sent a formal letter to officials of the Berlin-Bremen Stock Exchange ("BBSE"), demanding that trading in the common stock of Cal-Maine Food's be immediately terminated on the BBSE. Cal-Maine's common stock was listed on the BBSE without the Company's knowledge or consent.

The Company also said it plans to work closely with the National Association of Securities Dealers and the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission to address this problem.

"Despite denials by BBSE officials, it is clear that the common share price of Cal-Maine, as well as the share prices of several other U.S. public companies, are being manipulated by naked short sellers taking advantage of the BBSE's lax trading rules," said Fred Adams Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Cal-Maine Foods.

A short sale involves borrowing and immediately selling stock in the expectation that the price of the shares will be lower by the time the borrower must replace the borrowed shares. A short sale is said to be naked if the borrowing transaction is not properly completed before the shares are sold, a circumstance that results in unwarranted selling pressure on a stock. "Such practices can have the effect of causing more shares to trade than actually exist," Adams said.

The National Association of Securities Dealers, which operates the NASDAQ system, recently made changes to its securities settlement rules that in effect prevent naked short selling. The Company believes that the unauthorized listing of the shares of Cal-Maine Foods and other publicly traded companies without their knowledge or permission appears to be an attempt to circumvent the tightened NASD rules.

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. is primarily engaged in the production, grading, packing and sale of fresh shell eggs. The Company, which is headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, currently is the largest producer and distributor of fresh shell eggs in the United States and sells the majority of its shell eggs in approximately 26 states across the southwestern, southeastern, mid-western and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.

Statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties (contained in the Company's SEC filings) that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. SEC filings may be obtained from the SEC or by contacting the Company.

SOURCE: Cal-Maine Foods, Inc.