The company’s shares plummeted 25% today after their report revealed a half-billion-dollar debt due within a year with an unclear payoff plan, along with hits to profits and higher costs.
The report (published in full here: finance.yahoo.com/news/kod…) demonstrates lacklustre growth and some considerable slowdowns in parts of the business. Pull quote:
“We expect to have a clear understanding by August 15 of how we will satisfy our obligations to all plan participants, and we anticipate completing the reversion by December of 2025. For the second half of the year, we will continue to focus on reducing costs today and converting our investments into long-term growth.”
In a statement to PetaPixel (petapixel.com/2025/08/12/k…), Kodak explained some of the language in their recent report and their plans going forward:
“The ‘going concern’ language in Kodak’s 10-Q is essentially required disclosure because Kodak’s debt comes due within 12 months of the filing. Kodak is confident it will be able to pay off a significant portion of its term loan well before it becomes due, and amend, extend or refinance our remaining debt and/or preferred stock obligations.”
“To fund the repayment, we plan to draw on the approximately $300 million in cash we expect to receive from the reversion and settlement of our U.S. pension fund (the Kodak Retirement Income Plan, or ‘KRIP’) in December. However, the KRIP reversion is not solely within Kodak’s control and therefore is not deemed ‘probable’ under U.S. GAAP accounting rules, which is what triggered the ‘going concern.’ Once the KRIP reversion is completed Kodak will be virtually net debt free and will have a stronger balance sheet than we have had in years.”
This reads like Kodak is cutting very close to their deadline but may still make it by the skin of their teeth.
One tangibly positive piece of news in that report is the nearly complete pharmaceutical facility — but that’s not a guarantee of any additional income in time, nor is it a commitment to producing film products in the future.
Part of the reason for the revenue drop stated in the report is the considerable investment into the facility upgrades Kodak performed last year (analog.cafe/comments/rq8i) and the eight-year development project that culminated this year in the release of remjet-free Vision 3 film (Daren and I discussed it at length in our recent podcast episode: analog.cafe/comments/198v).
Of course, film is only part of the company’s still a large business; despite the growing interest in this medium, it won’t be able to save the company alone.
@RompingBronco on YouTube sat in on the earnings call with Kodak in his recent #video🍿 post: youtube.com/watch?v=uFO3ut…, where the CEO, Jim Continenza, suggested that the US tarifs may benefit Kodak (a US company) in some ways domestically but have also contributed to the higher cost of aluminum, a raw material likely imported from Canada (the tariff negotiations between the two countries are still ongoing).
With all that in mind, it’s helpful to remember the context of the company that has so far emerged from multiple bankruptcies, still making film.
For a deeper dive into Kodak’s complex business structure and financial solvency, check out Daren’s 2023 video, when the company’s future still remained in question: youtube.com/watch?v=xf1vFv…
Update: Kodak issued a statement regarding “Misleading Media Reports.”
The news of Kodak’s financial report that dunked their stock price 25% scared not just investors but also others who depend on their product. Here’s Kodak’s response in full (also found on kodak.com/en/company/blog-…):
***
Statement Regarding Misleading Media Reports
August 13, 2025
Media reports that Kodak is ceasing operations, going out of business, or filing for bankruptcy are inaccurate and reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of a recent technical disclosure the Company made to the SEC in its recently filed second quarter earnings report. These articles are misleading and missing critical context, and we’d like to set the record straight.
The most important things to know are:
Kodak has no plans to cease operations, go out of business, or file for bankruptcy protection.
To the contrary, Kodak is confident it will repay, extend, or refinance its debt and preferred stock on, or before, its due date.
When the transactions we have planned are completed, which is expected to be early next year, Kodak will have a stronger balance sheet than we have had in years and will be virtually net debt free.
The “going concern disclosure” is a technical report that is required by accounting rules.
We will continue to meet our obligations to all pension fund participants.
Pension Fund Transaction
Kodak has been preparing for the pension plan termination for some time and expects to receive approximately $500 million of assets – after meeting our obligations to all pension fund participants – in December 2025 when the transaction closes. Approximately $300 million of the funds are expected to be cash, and approximately $200 million are expected to be investment assets that will be converted into cash.
Kodak’s Debt Position
To provide context, Kodak currently has $477 million of term debt and $100 million of preferred stock outstanding. Kodak is required by its loan documents to use the $300 million of cash expected to be received in December to repay term debt. Kodak can then address the remaining $177 million of term debt and $100 million of preferred stock.
Kodak’s Ongoing Operations
In addition to our focus on reducing debt and interest payments, we believe our business is stable and self-sustaining. In Q2 2025 we used only $3 million in cash, primarily to invest in growth initiatives, a significant improvement compared with Q1, and we do not plan to rely on cash from the pension fund transaction to fund our operations.
In short, Kodak is confident in its plan to meet all its obligations and optimistic about its future.
For more detailed information about this topic, please review Kodak’s Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on August 11, 2025, including the cautionary language about forward looking statements in such filing which are incorporated by reference herein.
Dmitri Aug 12, ‘25, edited on Aug 12, ‘25
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