Angelica Corporation
(NYSE:AGL) shares rose $0.24, or 1.08%, to $22.44 today after the
company responded to Pirate Capital's request for the company to
explore strategic alternatives. The news comes after the activist hedge
fund pushed for the company to put itself up for sale in order to
unlock shareholder value.
The textile rental company announced
that it has already hired Morgan, Joseph & Co. to explore strategic
options including a sale. As a result, the company requested that
Pirate Capital immediately remove its proposal from the company's next
proxy statement or it would request that the SEC allow it be removed
due to redundancy.
Pirate Capital responded today, however, by
saying that it had requested a nationally recognized investment bank to
explore options - not a small firm that has pre-existing connections
with the company. The activist hedge fund noted that Joseph Morgan has
been involved with the company for more than 17 months now and nothing
has been accomplished. Shareholders are not simply looking for more
analysis; rather, they are looking for an investment bank that is
willing to search for strategic alternatives to help unlock shareholder
value.
In the end, Pirate Capital and many other investors
remain unsatisfied with the company. In fact, the hedge fund threatened
to take action by nominating its own candidates to the company's board
of directors. Investors must now wait and see how the company will
respond to see what the odds look like for a possible sale of the
company. This makes AGL a stock
worth watching!
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