Fender Musical Instruments, which has made guitars for generations of rock legends, denied media reports on Wednesday that it had hired financial advisors to find a buyer for the company.
The Financial Times, citing people familiar with the situation, said on Wednesday that Goldman Sachs has been hired to sell the legendary guitar company, which could draw bids of up to $500 million.
Reuters later ran a similar story, citing a source close to the situation.
But Fender Chairman and Chief Executive Bill Schultz, who participated in a buyout of the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company by U.S. private equity firm Weston Presidio in 1985, denied those reports in a terse statement released late Wednesday.
“I want to make sure that you hear this straight from me; this article is completely erroneous, and FMIC is not for sale,” he said. “From time to time, FMIC conducts a valuation process to determine the current financial state of the company. This is something it has done over the years, and something it will continue to do periodically.”
Schultz said the company’s current owners remained “intact” and would continue to do so.
