Playtex CEO Says Sale Process Still on Track

Playtex Products Inc. chief executive Michael Gallagher said the company’s effort to find a merger partner remained ongoing, although it didn’t expect to announce a deal for several more months.

“It was my expectation that the complete process would take six or nine months,” Mr. Gallagher told analysts and investors on a conference call to discuss the company’s fourth quarter earnings. “I believe we are right on track.”

The maker of tampons, Mr. Bubble bath soap and other products announced in November that it would seek to find a buyer. The auction was initiated by investment firm Hass Wheat, which owns 33% of the company’s shares and is looking to cash out. Playtex’s stock price has been depressed.

Recently, the market has been rife with rumors that Playtex would end the sale process because of a lack of interest among buyers and the continued slide of the company’s stock price. But Gallagher sought to dispel those rumors on Tuesday.

“It will be quite a while before we really have any comments to make,” he said. “I expected to see a robust process and I’m not dissatisfied with where we are today. We will in the meantime be running our businesses as we have in the past.”