Barnes & Noble Investor Wants More Money for Bookseller
June 14, 2019
An investor holding a 3.4% stake in Barnes & Noble is urging the bookseller’s board to consider more lucrative offers for the country’s largest brick-and-mortar bookstore.
The fiscally-challenged chain, which sells DVD/Blu-ray Disc movies, in addition to digital content through its Nook subsidiary, earlier this month accepted a $478.8 million offer ($683 million including debt) from private fund manager Elliott Management.
Book distributor Readerlink LLC then disclosed it was working on a superior bid.
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Richard Schottenfeld, who reportedly ranks among the chain’s top 10 investors, in a June 13 filing said he believes Barnes & Noble is worth “considerably more” than the agreed-upon sale price, and believe that the special committee, including its chairman, Mark Carlton, “has failed in its duty to maximize value for shareholders.”
Schottenfeld’s action could be too late.
Should B&N renege on the acquisition, it would owe Elliott a $4 million break-up fee. That amounts balloons to $17.5 million after June 13.