New York
CNN
—
Macy’s rejected an unsolicited $6 billion bid from an activist investor to take the famed division retailer non-public final month. Now, the activist group is taking one other shot at Macy’s, launching a proxy battle to take management of the board.
Arkhouse Administration Co., an actual property funding group, nominated 9 administrators to Macy’s board of administrators, successfully attempting to grab management of the 14-member board.
Macy’s inventory worth has dropped 75% from a peak of $73 a share in 2015. Since then, it has closed practically 300 shops — nearly one third of its places — however nonetheless operates about 700 throughout its manufacturers.
Final month, Macy’s introduced it was shedding about 3.5% of its workforce, or roughly 2,350 workers.
The corporate’s struggles have attracted the eye of activist buyers, comparable to Arkhouse.
Macy’s stated Tuesday it should consider Arkhouse’s proposed board candidates, however criticized Arkhouse and one other activist investor, Brigade, in a press release.
“Arkhouse and Brigade have but to supply any financing particulars that may improve the actionability of their proposal regardless of a number of alternatives to take action, and as an alternative of trying a constructive dialogue, Arkhouse has chosen to launch a proxy contest,” Macy’s stated in a press release.
Macy’s has struggled in opposition to rising competitors and a migration of consumers away from department stores.
The corporate has tried quite a few methods lately to revitalize enterprise, comparable to new manufacturers and smaller shops, however the strikes haven’t altered its long-term trajectory.
Arkhouse didn’t publicly disclose its plans for Macy’s, however analysts believed it will dump Macy’s beneficial actual property and maybe take different actions, comparable to spinning off its e-commerce enterprise.
However Macy’s “decided that the proposal was not actionable and lacked compelling worth.”