ATLANTA, Jan. 25, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Premier Exhibitions, Inc. (Nasdaq:PRXI), a major provider of museum-quality exhibitions throughout the world, today announced that John A. Stone has resigned from the position of Chief Financial Officer effective January 19, 2011. To facilitate the transition of his duties to his successor, Mr. Stone has agreed to provide consulting services to the Company over the next four months.
Samuel Weiser, a director of the Company, will oversee the finance department during the transition pursuant to an existing consulting agreement between the Company and Mr. Weiser. Mr. Weiser, age 50, served as a member and the Chief Operating Officer of Sellers Capital LLC, an investment management firm and large shareholder of the Company, where he was responsible for all non-investment activities, from 2007 to 2010. He is currently an advisor to Sellers Capital LLC. Mr. Weiser is also an indirect investor in Sellers Capital Master Fund, Ltd., an investment fund managed by Sellers Capital LLC and Premier's largest shareholder. From April 2005 to 2007, he was a Managing Director responsible for the Hedge Fund Consulting Group within Citigroup Inc.'s Global Prime Brokerage division. Mr. Weiser is also a former partner at Ernst & Young LLP. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Colby College and a Master of Science in Accounting from George Washington University. Mr. Weiser is a Certified Public Accountant.
The Board of Directors is conducting a search for Mr. Stone's replacement as Chief Financial Officer and will consider the appointment of a replacement, on a permanent or interim basis, at its upcoming board meetings.
Christopher Davino, Chief Executive Officer of the Company, said, "We thank John for his dedicated service to Premier and its shareholders during this pivotal time. While we work diligently to locate John's successor, we are pleased to have Sam's service to lead the finance department in the meantime. We are fortunate that Sam's experience and knowledge of our business will provide us with valuable financial leadership during this time of transition."
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains information that may constitute "forward-looking statements," which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Generally, the words "believe," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "project," "will" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Premier Exhibitions, Inc. has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations and projections about future events, based on the information currently available to it. Management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made. However, such statements are dependent upon, and can be influenced by, a number of external variables over which management has little or no control, including but not limited to the factors described in Premier Exhibitions' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the section of its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended February 29, 2010 titled "Risk Factors." These variables may affect Premier Exhibitions' future results and cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Our Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a guarantee of future performance or results, nor will they necessarily prove to be accurate indications of the performance that is ultimately achieved. As a result, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements.