Monday, July 30, 2007
Packeteer Inc. (NDAQ:PKTR) shares moved up marginally today after Chapman Capital disclosed a 9.9 percent stake in the company and demanded that the company immediately hire an investment bank to maximize shareholder value. The wireless application provider has been facing widespread criticism since posting a wide loss during the second quarter of this year. Shareholders are hoping that Chapman can help unlock value through a sale of the company.

Activist investor Robert Chapman is well known for actively seeking to turn around or force the sale of the companies in which he is involved. He is also known for not being especially patient - and Packeteer's board may have pushed the envelope. In his letter to the company, Chapman noted that both the CEO and CFO failed to return his calls or respond to his inquiries and demanded that both be immediately fired. After all, Chapman is one of the largest owners of the company with a 9.9% stake!

Any investment bank will likely recommend one of several actions. The most anticipated action is a sale of the company to a strategic or financial buyer. Another possibility would be a leveraged recapitalization of the company that would enable shareholders to seek immediate returns in the form of one-time dividends or share buybacks. Either way, these actions would result in a windfall for shareholders. And given Chapman's reputation and large stake in this company, we think there is a decent chance that the company will eventually take action and hire and investment banker to explore its options. This makes PKTR a stock worth watching!

Related Companies
Cisco Systems (CSCO)
Websense Inc. (WBSN)
Computer Sciences Corp. (CSC)

7/30/2007 11:45:13 PM UTC  #    Comments [0]  |  Trackback
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