Filed under: Bad news, Rumors, Blockbuster Inc ‘A’ (BBI)

Less than two weeks ago, shares of Movie Gallery Inc. (NASDAQ: MOVI) surged more than 17% on news that the company was closing 13% of its stores. On Monday, the stock is set to tank on reports that the company is on the verge of filing for bankruptcy protection in a prepackaged deal that would exchange its debt obligations for equity.

According to The Wall Street Journal (subscription required), “The Dothan, Ala., company will file for bankruptcy this month and hopes to emerge from Chapter 11 in early 2008, according to people with direct knowledge of Movie Gallery’s plans. They spoke on condition that they not be identified.”

The company is burdened with a massive debt load, much of it the result of its ill-conceived $1 billion acquisition of Hollywood Video in 2005. Interestingly, Movie Gallery outbid Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI) for that prize: File that one under Pyrrhic victory.

Brick-and-mortar movie rental outlets have struggled with competition from services like Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Blockbuster’s Total Access program.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, October 7th, 2007 at 9:40 am and is filed under Stocks Money News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.