HRG Group

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Harbinger Capital.

HRG Group, Inc.
NYSE: HRG
Russell 2000 Component
Founded1999 (1999)[1]
DefunctJuly 13, 2018
RevenueDecrease US$5.2 billion (2017) [1]
Number of employees
16,021[2]

HRG Group, Inc., formerly Harbinger Group Inc. and Zapata Corporation,[3] was a holding company based in Rochester, New York,[4] having originated from an oil company started by a group including future U.S. president George H. W. Bush. In 2009, it was renamed the Harbinger Group Inc.[5]

Early business history

The company traced its origins to Zapata Petroleum Corporation, founded in 1953 by future U.S. President

better source needed] Their joint activities culminated in the establishment of Zapata Oil.[7] The company was named for Viva Zapata!, a 1952 biographical film starring Marlon Brando as Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata.[8] The initial $1 million (equivalent to $11,400,000 in 2023) investment for Zapata was provided by the Liedtke brothers and their circle of investors, by Bush's father Prescott Bush
and his maternal grandfather George Herbert Walker, and their family's circle of friends. Hugh Liedtke was named president, Bush was vice president; Overbey soon left.

According to a CIA internal memo dated November 29, 1975,[7] Zapata Petroleum began in 1953 through Bush's joint efforts with Thomas J. Devine, a CIA staffer who had resigned his agency position that same year to go into private business, but who continued to work for the CIA under commercial cover. Devine would later accompany Bush to Vietnam in late 1967 as a "cleared and witting commercial asset" of the agency, acted as his informal foreign affairs advisor, and had a close relationship with him through 1975.[9]

In 1954, Zapata Off-Shore Company was formed as a subsidiary of Zapata Oil, with Bush as president of the new company. He raised some startup money from

Philip Graham.[10][11]

Zapata Off-Shore accepted an offer from an inventor, R. G. LeTourneau, for the development of a mobile but secure drilling rig. Zapata advanced him $400,000, which was to be refundable if the completed rig did not function, followed by an additional $550,000 together with 38,000 shares of Zapata Off-Shore common stock when it did.

The U.S. government began to auction off mineral rights to the Caribbean, the

seven largest U.S. oil producers included wells 40 miles (64 km) north of Isabela, Cuba, near the island Cay Sal
.

In 1959 Bush bought control of Zapata Off-Shore, funded with $800,000,

better source needed
]

In 1960,

Pan American Petroleum, with whom Zapata had a previous offshore contract. The deal with Permargo is not mentioned in Zapata's annual reports, and SEC records are missing. In 1988, a Bush spokesman claimed that the deal lasted only from March to September 1960. However, Zapata sold the oil-drilling rig Nola I to Pemargo in 1964.[citation needed
]

Zapata's filing records with the U.S.

Securities and Exchange Commission are intact for the years 1955–1959, and again from 1967 onwards. However, records for the years 1960–1966 are missing. The commission's records officer stated that the records were inadvertently placed in a session file to be destroyed by a federal warehouse, and that a total of 1,000 boxes were pulped in this procedure. The destruction of records occurred either in October 1983 (according to the records officer), or in 1981 shortly after Bush became Vice President of the United States (according to, Wison Carpenter, a record analyst with the commission).[17]

During the

Barron's said Zapata was "a part time purchasing front for the [Central Intelligence Agency]".[18]

In 1962, Bush was joined in Zapata Off-Shore by Robert Gow.[19] By 1963, Zapata Off-Shore had four operational oil-drilling rigs—Scorpion (from 1956, the first oil-drilling jackup rig ever built), Vinegaroon (from 1957), Sidewinder, and (in the Persian Gulf) Nola III.

In 1963, Zapata Petroleum merged with South Penn Oil to become Pennzoil.

By 1964, Zapata Off-Shore had a number of subsidiaries, including: Seacat-Zapata Offshore Company (Persian Gulf), Zapata de Mexico, Zapata International Corporation, Zapata Mining Corporation, Zavala Oil Company, Zapata Overseas Corporation, and a 41% share of Amata Gas Corporation.

In 1964, Bush ran for the United States Senate, and lost; he continued as president of Zapata Off-Shore until 1966, when he sold his interest to Doyle Mize and ran for the U.S. House of Representatives.

On September 9, 1965, Hurricane Betsy struck the coast of Louisiana sinking the oil rig Maverick.[20] There were no deaths, however, $8 million in Zapata assets were lost.[20] A helicopter flew Bush over the area for several days until debris was located.[20] After evidence was submitted to Lloyd's of London for the loss, they paid Zapata for the claim.[20]

In 1966, William Stamps Farish III, age 28, joined the board of Zapata.[citation needed]

Decline

Zapata sought to acquire a controlling interest in the United Fruit Company in 1969, but was outbid by Eli M. Black's AMK Corp.[21] Robert Gow's father, Ralph Gow, was on United Fruit's board of directors.

In the 1970s, under chairman and CEO William Flynn, Zapata expanded its business to include subsidiaries in dredging, construction, coal mining, copper mining and fishing.

By the late 1970s, saddled with weak operations, high debt and low return on investment, the company again began undergoing changes in management and direction. Led by John Mackin, who succeeded William Flynn, the company began selling off some of those businesses and refocused on offshore oil and gas exploration and production.

In 1982, chief operating officer Ronald Lassiter assumed the role of CEO, and presided over a decade of loss-making brought on by the collapse of oil prices. In 1982, Zapata Off-shore became Zapata Corporation. Its stock performed poorly. By 1986, Zapata was one of the bad loans that shook the foundations of San Francisco-based Bank of America, with a debt of more than $500 million and a fiscal year loss of $250 million. The company announced several restructurings during those years and managed to stave off bankruptcy, but continued to incur major losses. In 1990 the oil drilling company proposed selling its entire fleet of offshore drilling rigs to focus solely on fishing. The company had not had a profitable quarter in more than five years.

In 1990, Zapata Offshore sold 12 of its drilling rigs to Arethusa Offshore, which a few years later merged with Diamond Offshore. Still struggling with debt by 1993, Zapata signed a deal with Norex America to raise more than $100 million through a loan and stock sale. But financier Malcolm Glazer, owner of the NFL franchise Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Premier League club Manchester United, and at the time owner of 40 percent of Zapata, did not want his holdings diluted and filed a lawsuit to block the deal.

Glazer era and the birth of Harbinger Group Inc.

By 1994, the company had come under Glazer's control, after a proxy fight. Glazer became chairman of Zapata, replacing Ronald Lassiter, and in 1995 Avram Glazer, son of Malcolm, was named CEO and president of Zapata.[22] De facto headquarters moved from Houston to Rochester, New York. It no longer engaged in exploration, but owned several natural gas service companies. It also produced protein products from the menhaden fish.[23] In subsequent years Zapata sold its energy-related businesses and focused on marine protein.

Between 1998 and 2000, Zapata tried to position itself as an internet media company under the "zap.com" name. In July 1998, Zapata announced its plans to acquire several web sites, including ChatPlanet, TravelPage and DailyStocks.com.[24][25] The company's stock boomed and crashed along with other dot-coms, and on January 24, 2001 the company conducted a 1 for 10 reverse stock split.[26] The venture was cited by many investment journalists as an example of a company jumping on the internet bandwagon without any relevant experience. This period is probably best remembered for Zapata's unsolicited (and unsuccessful) takeover bid of the Excite internet portal.[27]

During this period, Zapata also built up a controlling stake in Safety Components International, a manufacturer of air bag fabrics and cushions.

On December 2, 2005, Zapata Corporation Chairman,

Wilbur L. Ross Jr. for $51.2 million.[28] The company sold its remaining stock in Omega Proteine on December 1, 2006, leaving it with no active subsidiary.[29]
The Glazer family sold its controlling stock of the Zapata Corporation to Philip Falcone's
NYSE.[32] In 2010–2011, Harbinger Capital Partners LLC transferred its 54.4% interest in Spectrum Brands to Harbinger Group Inc. giving the company controlling interest in that company.[33][34] Also in 2011 Harbinger Group Inc. acquired the insurance company Old Mutual U.S. Life Holdings, Inc. from Old Mutual.[35][33]

In December 2013, Salus Capital (a unit of Harbinger Group) and

Fidelity & Guaranty Life, the insurer backed by Harbinger Group, also has a $50 million stake in the RadioShack bankruptcy.[42][43] An impairment of $105.0, out of the $150 million net exposure, recognized as of March 31, 2015.[44]

On February 26, 2018, the company announced it was merging with Spectrum Brands, which it was a controlling shareholder of.[45] The merger was completed on July 13.[46][47]

References

  1. ^ a b "HRG Group". Forbes.
  2. ^ "Future of HRG Group | Quantumrun". Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  3. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Mar 11, 2015" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  4. ^ admin-dt (November 23, 2017). "Quantumrun company rankings". Quantumrun. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  5. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Dec 28, 2009" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  6. ^ Baker, Russ, Family of Secrets (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009) p. 13.
  7. ^ a b Withheld (sanitized, unclassified document), Central Intelligence Agency (November 29, 1975). "Memorandum: To: Deputy Director of Operations; Subject: Messrs. George Bush and Thomas J." NARA Record Number: 104-10310-10271.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Schoenfeld Walker, Amy; Marsh, Amy (December 1, 2018). "George Bush's Life in 13 Objects". The New York Times. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
  9. ^ "MEMORANDUM:MESSRS. GEORGE BUSH AND THOMAS J. DEVINE", 3 pp.
  10. ^ Hasty, Michael (February 5, 2004). "Secret admirers: The Bushes and the Washington Post". Online Journal. Archived from the original on April 5, 2004.
  11. ^ Perin, Monica (April 23, 1999). "Adios, Zapata! Colorful company founded by Bush relocates to N.Y."
    Houston Business Journal
    .
  12. ISBN 0-396-07919-9
    .
  13. ^ "Zapata Oil Files, 1943–1983". George Bush Personal Papers.
    George Bush Presidential Library. Archived from the original
    on August 20, 2007.
  14. ^ Russ Baker, Family of Secrets (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009) p. 36.
  15. ^ Russ Baker, Family of Secrets (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009) p. 35.
  16. ^ Russ Baker, Family of Secrets (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009) pp. 23–28.
  17. ^ Jonathan Kwitny, "The Mexican Connection: A look at an old George Bush business venture", Barron's September 19, 1988. Cited with further discussion by Russ Baker, Family of Secrets (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2009) pp. 37 and 503.
  18. ^
    ISBN 9781416580072
    . Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  19. ^ "Green Acres". February 2000.
  20. ^
    ISBN 0-385-49864-0
    .
  21. ^ "Prettying Up Chiquita", Time. September 3, 1973.
  22. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Jul 21, 1994". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  23. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 10-K, Annual Report, Filing Date Dec 29, 1994". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  24. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Jul 22, 1998". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  25. ^ July 1998. Zapata's next shot at the Net. http://news.cnet.com/Zapatas-next-shot-at-the-Net/2100-1023_3-212978.html
  26. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Feb 9, 2001". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  27. ^ Suzanne Galante (May 21, 1998). "Excite rejects Zapata's bid". CNET News.com.
  28. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Dec 8, 2005". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  29. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Dec 7, 2006" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  30. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Jun 23, 2009" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  31. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Jul 14, 2009". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  32. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 10-Q/A, Filing Date Dec 22, 2009" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  33. ^ a b "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Apr 11, 2011" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  34. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Jun 10, 2011". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  35. ^ "Harbinger Group Inc, Form 10-Q, Quarterly Report, Filing Date Nov 9, 2010". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  36. ^ "RadioShack Corporation, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Dec 13, 2013". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  37. ^ "RadioShack Corporation, Form 10-K, Annual Report, Filing Date Mar 4, 2014" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  38. ^ "RadioShack to Fight Covenant Breaches Claim from Harbinger Unit (NYSE:RSH) | Seeking Alpha". December 2, 2014.
  39. ^ "RadioShack Corporation, Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Feb 11, 2015" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  40. ^ "Behind RadioShack's Collapse Is a Tiny Distressed Lender". Bloomberg. February 8, 2015.
  41. ^ "Small Lender's Interests Might Have Bankrupted RadioShack Corporation". Archived from the original on February 11, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  42. ^ "HRG Group, Inc., Form 8-K, Current Report, Filing Date Apr 9, 2015". secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  43. ^ Tracer, Zachary (February 10, 2015). "RadioShack Creditors Said to Include Harbinger's Insurer F&G". Bloomberg.
  44. ^ "HRG Group, Inc., Form 10-Q, Quarterly Report, Filing Date May 8, 2015" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  45. ^ "Spectrum Brands to merge with top shareholder HRG in $10 billion deal". Reuters. February 26, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  46. ^ "Spectrum Brands closes merger with HRG Group". S&P Global. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  47. ^ "Spectrum Brands and HRG Group Complete Previously Announced Merger". www.businesswire.com. July 13, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2023.

Public records

  • SEC filings of Zapata Corporation
  • Zapata Offshore Annual Reports, Microform Reading Room, Library of Congress.
  • National Security Archives documentation of GHW Bush's CIA involvement in the early 1960s.[dead link]
  • United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Civil Action 88–2600 GHR, Archives and Research Center v. Central Intelligence Agency, Affidavit of George William Bush, September 21, 1988.

Zapata

  • Franklin, H. Bruce, "Net Losses", Mother Jones, March 2006 – extensive article on role of Menhaded in ecosystem and possible results of overfishing. Retrieved February 21, 2006

George H.W. Bush

  • Kevin Philips, American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush, Penguin (2004), esp. pp. 200–208.
  • Joseph McBride, "The Man Who Wasn't There: 'George Bush,' CIA Operative", The Nation, July 16/23, 1988, p. 42.
  • Joseph McBride, "Where Was George?", The Nation, August 13/20, 1988, on the whereabouts of GHW Bush on November 22, 1963.
  • Nicolas King, George Bush: A Biography.
  • Anthony L. Kimery, "George Bush and the CIA: In the Company of Friends", Covert Action Quarterly, Summer, 1992.
  • The Mafia, CIA & George [HW] Bush, Pete Brewton, S.P.I. Books, 1992

CIA

  • Beschloss, Michael R. 1991. The Crisis Years: Kennedy and Khrushchev, 1960–63 Edward Burlingame Books, p. 89 refers to "Operation Zapata" as the codename for the Bay of Pigs operation.
  • Bissell, Richard M. Jr., with Jonathan E. Lewis and Frances T. Pudlo. 1996. Reflections of a Cold Warrior: From Yalta to the Bay of Pigs Yale University Press
    ISBN 978-0-300-06430-8

Others

  • Daniel Yergin, The Prize, (1991).

External links

Official website

  • Business data for HRG Group Inc.:
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