Bobbin and weepin' at Texfi Industries.

• Position: Financial health of textile manufacturer - Tar Heel Tattler - Brief Article

If not for bad luck, Texfi Industries would seem to have no luck at all.

"We had positioned ourselves for significant growth opportunities," says Michael Miller, CFO of the Raleigh-based textile manufacturer [Texfi Beats its Doom, May 1990]. "Then the economy slipped backward," and cotton went from 65 cents to 95 cents a pound.

Kay Norwood, an analyst with Interstate/Johnson Lane in Charlotte, figures company debt ($73.8 million if redeemable preferred stock is included) is three times greater than shareholder equity.

In September, Norwood decided the risk was no longer worth the reward and issued a sell recommendation. The stock was trading in the $4-to-$5 range last fall after a high of $8 in 1990 and $12 in 1989.

Despite an $8.7 million loss in the third quarter - $ 7.6 million of that from shutting down fleecing operations - Texfi has made some moves to bolster the balance sheet, changing product...