Minneapolis – Best Buy’s directors have reportedly thwarted founder Dick Schulze’s 11th hour effort to boost his sway over the company’s board, effectively ending his bid to regain control of the CE chain.
According to the Wall Street Journal, negotiations over a proposed minority stake that would have given Schulze and his backers three seats on the 11-director board have foundered, along with an earlier effort to acquire the company in an $8 billion buyout.
The directors also rebuffed Schulze’s attempt to regain his chairmanship and install supporter and former CEO Brad Anderson on the retailer’s board, a source told the Minneapolis StarTribune.
Best Buy granted Schulze two extensions to submit a formal buyout bid after announcing his intentions last August, with the final deadline set for midnight tonight. Should he miss the cutoff, he will be unable to pursue the company again until 2014 under terms of a deal hammered out last year.
Best Buy delayed releasing its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings until after the deadline, and will announce its results on Friday morning.
