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Langer trying to regain its footing with sale

BY JAMES BERNSTEIN | james.bernstein@newsday.com

5:55 PM EDT, June 18, 2008

Langer Inc., the Deer Park-based orthopedic shoe maker, tried to put its best foot forward last week, announcing the sale of another part of itself in an attempt to get the company on track after a year of losses.

But despite Langer's sale last Wednesday of its Regal Medical Supply unit for $501,000 in cash to a private group, investors remain cautious about Langer.

Shares of Langer did rise 28 cents, or 26 percent, in trading Wednesday, closing at $1.34. But they had fallen immediately after the announcement, and are substantially below the 52-week high of $6.00.

The sale of Regal marked the second time this year that Langer has sold a major part of itself.

In January, Langer said it had sold stock of its Langer UK unit for about $1.14 million to a specialized footware retailer, Sole Solutions. That sale, Langer said at the time, was part of a strategy to return to profitability. Langer said its losses were the result of two big acquisitions -- Twincraft Inc. and Regal, at a combined cost of about $28 million.

Now, Langer has turned around and sold Regal to an investors group, including a member of Regal's management.

In a statement, Gary Hudkins, Langer's president, said, "Given the financial benefits of continuing to simplify the company and the expected investment required to grow Regal, we determined divestiture of Regal was in the best interests of our shareholders."

Hudkins said Langer looks forward "to our Langer business continuing to provide Regal with products for the long-term care market and working with Regal on various sales initiatives as partners in the future."

In its most recent quarter that ended March 31, Langer said its losses widened, to $1.8 million, compared to a loss of $784,000 in the same period last year. Langer said losses were greater in the latest period because of a decrease in gross profit. Gross profits fell due to an increase in material costs at Twincraft, Langer said.

Langer was started by Dr. Sheldon Langer in 1969 as Langer Acrylic Laboratory, in Plainview. The lab became known for its specialized foot orthotics, a shoe insert that changes bone movement in the foot, and gait analysis, the first computer-aided diagnostic equipment to gather information through the patient's foot. Langer died in 2004, at the age of 80.

The company employes about 487 people.