Friendly’s explores sale of company

WILBRAHAM, Mass. – Friendly Ice Cream Corp. said Wednesday it will consider putting itself up for sale after posting a profit in the fourth quarter.

The company issued a statement saying it has hired Goldman Sachs & Co. as a financial adviser and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP as a legal adviser to assist “in exploring strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value, including a possible sale of the company.”

Company spokeswoman Deborah Burns said a timeframe hasn’t been set for the review.

“The board is committed to do a thoughtful, thorough examination of all the options,” she said.

The company reported a fourth quarter profit of $136,000, or 2 cents per share, compared with a loss of $30.2 million, or $3.82 per share during the same period a year earlier. Friendly’s posted an annual profit of $5 million, or 61 cents per share, compared with a loss of $27.3 million, or $3.49 per share last year. Revenue rose to $531.5 million from $531.4 million.

Friendly’s was started in Springfield in 1935 by brothers Prestley and Curtis Blake. Prestley Blake sold the company in 1979, but has continued to be a major shareholder and vociferous critic of the company’s current management.

Friendly’s now runs a chain of 514 company-owned and franchise restaurants in the Northeast, including nine in Maine, and distributes ice cream through more than 4,500 supermarkets and other retail locations.