diff --git a/PEFTools/MakePEF.cc b/PEFTools/MakePEF.cc
index 96085a9a6a..9f5d03bb53 100755
--- a/PEFTools/MakePEF.cc
+++ b/PEFTools/MakePEF.cc
@@ -104,6 +104,9 @@ public:
     {
         std::string name = mem.empty() ? base : mem;
 
+        if(name.empty())    // skip initial empty entry
+            return;
+
         if(verboseFlag)
             std::cerr << "XCOFF name \"" << name << '"' << std::endl;