Activist Southeastern Prepares Proxy Fight to Force Mattel Sale
MAT sits 38% above its 52-week low of $12.4.
Summary
Southeastern Asset Management, which owns 12.3 million shares or 4.3% of Mattel, is preparing to launch a proxy fight and nominate directors to push the toy maker toward a sale, per a Semafor report citing people familiar. Ariel Investments, another large holder, has reportedly told other investors that change is needed at the company. This escalates the campaign Southeastern began in May, when it urged Mattel to explore strategic alternatives, and lands while takeover interest is already in the air: Authentic Brands floated a bid above $20 a share (roughly $6 billion) earlier this month, and Zuru is reportedly weighing an offer. A credible board challenge raises the odds that Mattel ends up in a sale process rather than staying independent, which is why the stock trades well above where it sat before the October bid reports. Note the plans could still change and no final decision has been made.
At the time of this announcement, MAT was trading at $17.11 on NASDAQ in the Trade & Services sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $4.9B. The 52-week trading range was $12.40 to $22.48. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 8 out of 10. Source: Seeking Alpha.