BIGLARI HOLDINGS INC.
NYSE: BH Meeting Date: 4/09/2015
Having made a name for himself as a combative investor, Sardar Biglari may finally get a taste of his own medicine this proxy season. The weeks leading up to the contested annual meeting for Biglari Holdings Inc. have been punctuated by allegations of failure from both the company and Groveland Capital LLC, the dissident shareholder which has nominated six of its own candidates to take over Mr. Biglari’s namesake company. While the arguments on both sides have been peppered with personal attacks—Groveland quotes an unnamed Biglari Holdings employee calling Mr. Biglari “secretive and unapproachable” while Biglari Holdings has resorted to pulling embarrassing Facebook photos of Groveland nominees—both dissident and company have compelling arguments for their points of view.
Groveland’s assertions regarding the company’s lagging performance and self-dealings with Mr. Biglari have generated a fair amount of press and certainly open the door for investor scrutiny. At the same time, the company’s concerns regarding the dissident’s stake in the company and the experience and skillset of its nominees may ring true with the company’s other shareholders. Ultimately, it remains to be seen whether the company will be able to buck Groveland’s advances, like Cracker Barrel has succeeded in doing with Mr. Biglari.
BANK OF MONTREAL
TSX: BMO Meeting Date: 3/31/2015
VOLVO AB
OMX Stockholm Exchange: VOLV.A Meeting Date: 4/01/2015
BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA
TSX: BNS Meeting Date: 4/09/2015
CARNIVAL plc
LSE/NYSE: CCL Meeting Date: 4/14/2015