Back in September, billionaire Ron Burkle lost his proxy war with Barnes & Noble's board, failing to kill the poison pill that kept him from upping his stake in the company. That made Wednesday's shareholders meeting all but a formality. But what's next for the nation's largest bookseller?
Bookseller Barnes & Noble Inc. may enact limitations on the size of single shareholder stakes, as the family of founder and chairman Leonard Riggio and activist shareholder Ron Burkle battle for control of the company.
Investor Ron Burkle, who's embroiled in a proxy fight at Barnes & Noble, says he doesn't want control of the bookseller. His Yucaipa Companies owns 18.8% of the company and claims in a letter that he wants Chairman Leonard Riggio's hold on Barnes & Noble broken.
The Japanese-style steakhouse chain is famous for its whirring cutlery, flying meat and flaming piles of onion slices, but recently the excitement has spread from the dining room to the boardroom as a struggle for power threatens the ownership structure of the company.
With the stock plunging and a trial between key shareholder Ron Burkle and top company execs heading to court, signs point ever more clearly to the possibility that Barnes & Noble will go private. And that just might be the right move.