Investment firm Arkhouse Management has recently launched a proxy battle at Macy’s, putting forth a slate of nine director nominees for election to the department store’s board. This move comes after Arkhouse made an unsolicited $21-a-share bid for Macy’s in December, which was rejected by the board. The board also questioned the financing of Arkhouse’s bid.
Arkhouse has nominated individuals with extensive experience in the industry, including former Brookfield executive Ric Clark, restructuring expert Mo Meghji, and former co-chief investment officer at SL Green, Isaac Zion. The firm claims that it has provided Macy’s board with further details on financing and is backed by equity partners with combined assets under management of over $75 billion.
However, Macy’s has expressed concerns about the lack of financing details provided by Arkhouse and stated that the firm has yet to enhance the actionability of its proposal. The department store has conducted a careful review of Arkhouse’s bid but has not been satisfied with the information provided.
Macy’s annual shareholder meeting for 2024 has not been scheduled yet. Under new rules adopted in 2023, shareholders will be able to choose individual director nominees from both activist and management slates at the meeting. This gives shareholders more power in influencing the composition of the board.
Arkhouse’s other nominees include Five Below director Richard Markee, investor Mitchell Shear, former Hudson Bay CEO Jerry Storch, former Victoria’s Secret CEO Sharen Turney, Nuveen impact investing head Nadir Settles, and retail executive Andrea Weiss. The firm states that its decision to launch a proxy battle is to protect the rights of all shareholders.
Overall, this proxy battle between Arkhouse Management and Macy’s highlights the ongoing struggle for control and influence within the company. With Arkhouse pushing for changes in the board composition, it remains to be seen how Macy’s will respond and whether shareholders will support the activist investor’s nominees.
