Proposed National Interstate Buyout Gets Messy
By Jim Mackinnon, The Akron Beacon Journal | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
He alleges in Securities and Exchange documents that majority shareholder
"They picked a very opportunistic time to do it," said Spachman, 66, who remains a director with the specialty insurance company and one of its largest shareholders. He filed documents with the
A lawsuit filed
Other law firms have issued statements saying they are investigating the buyout proposal.
Neither
Spachman said he's not opposed to a buyout but that the process needs to be open and independent.
"It's not my concern they're trying to buy the company," Spachman said. "I'm on record saying it could be a good thing."
The current process hurts small shareholders, Spachman said. "It's not illegal. I'm alleging it's not the best way."
"That's not what happened here," he said. "In many states what they are trying to do would not be allowed."
But
Five of the company's 10 directors are current or former employees of
"You have a board with six conflicted people on it," he said. "It doesn't sound like a level playing field. It isn't a level playing field."
What he wants
Spachman declined to say what he thinks would be an appropriate buyout offer. His 1.82 million shares of
He said typically these kinds of buyouts are done with prices above the 52-week high. In
"If they want to pay a fair price, I want them to buy the company," Spachman said.
In addition,
Fledgling
"They promised us independent operations, hands off. We agreed to do it," Spachman said. "In retrospect, it was a good decision."
The small amount of money AFG spent to buy half of
Based on Friday's
___
(c)2014 the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)
Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.com
Distributed by MCT Information Services
Wordcount: | 878 |
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News