By Kevin McCauley
Starboard Value, which owns a five percent AOL stake, has received a boost from proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services, which is urging shareholders to back two of Starboard’s three dissident directors in the June 14 annual meeting vote.
ISS noted: “Because the company does appear to still have a significant issue with cost structure, yet the board, with its rhetoric about ‘liquidation,’ appears to have dug in its heels on exactly the dry-eyed, disciplined business analysis which will be critical to both streamlining the business and allocating capital effectively, it appears likely shareholders would benefit from additional directors with industry knowledge and deep appreciation for these analyses.”
The proxy advisory firm said Dennis Miller and Jeffrey Smith “appear particularly well-equipped to drive the boardroom change the dissident has demonstrated is necessary.”
Miller is a venture capital, while Smith is Starboard’s chief.
ISS is supporting the re-election of six AOL incumbent directors.
AOL has rejected the Starboard slate because it fails to offer a “viable strategy of vision for the company.
Sard Verbinnen represents Starboard.
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