Acxiom’s management is digging its heels in as a potential hostile takeover firm upped the ante last Friday.
On Friday, ValueAct Capital Partners said it was prepared to pay $25 per share for the stake in Acxiom it does not currently own. The San Francisco-based equity firm holds around 12% of the company’s stock.
As the war of words escalates, the direction each sees for Acxiom is emerging. After ValueAct indicated it would be willing to increase its offer, Acxiom company leader Charles Morgan issued an internal memo. In it, Morgan disagreed with ValueAct’s managing partner Jeff Ubben’s assessment that the Little Rock, AR-based data firm should not be pursuing its outsourcing business.
“We, however, remain strongly committed to our outsourcing business, which with our move into ‘data factory’ outsourcing is even more strategic for us than ever – and are convinced it represents a major growth opportunity,” Morgan wrote.
“Our company obviously is under attack, and I sincerely believe Acxiom as we know it – despite the tough times and tough decisions that have marked recent years – will radically change if ValueAct ever takes control of our company,” Morgan added.
Ubben, however, may be softening his takeover rhetoric. In an interview with the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Ubben said his group would applaud a change in Acxiom’s management, and the resulting strategy change.
Ubben added that he still saw taking the company private as the best way to effect such change, according to the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.
ValueAct has placed Lou Andreozzi, most recently president/CEO of LexisNexis; Mike Lawrie, a former CEO of Siebel Systems; and Mike Wood, who had previously served as CFO of Worldspan Technologies and senior vice president and general manager of ChoicePoint Inc. on retainer. All three have agreed to stand for election to Acxiom’s board of directors. Additionally, if ValueAct were successful in gaining control of Acxiom, Andreozzi would be a candidate for the CEO position currently held by Morgan.
According to Morgan’s internal letter, Acxiom’s board of directors will review the offer and make a recommendation based on what it believes is in the best interest of the company and its shareholders. Morgan did not offer a timetable for the board’s activities.
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