Further copy about SK/LLE/PHV in an excerpt taken from the Interactive WSJ, a subscription service.
But the result was, in particular, a blow to Mr. Brinckman, who had visited many large shareholders in recent weeks, seeking their support for the Philip-led bid. Some money managers said they weren't swayed by the appeals.
"I did have an impassioned plea from Mr. Brinckman. I sympathized with him, but I didn't agree with him," said portfolio manager Roland Whitridge at David L. Babson & Co., Boston.
The Safety-Kleen board set a meeting for late Monday to decide its next move, said a spokeswoman.
Philip couldn't be reached for comment.
Before the vote, Safety-Kleen's board had said it disagreed with Laidlaw's estimates of the cost savings that could be achieved by merging the two companies and, therefore, it felt Laidlaw's offer was not worth $30 a share because its stock price would drop after the acquisition.
Laidlaw Environmental, a hazardous-waste management concern, is based
in Columbia, S.C., and controlled by Laidlaw Inc., of Burlington, Ontario. Some analysts were relieved that the Philip group had failed to acquire Safety-Kleen, since Philip, a Hamilton, Ontario, metal-recycling and environmental-services concern, has gone on an expansion binge, purchasing more than 30 companies in the past two years. It also recently announced a $92 million charge due to losses in unauthorized copper trading.
Philip also had a huge one time charge that came from writing down the value of their copper holdings which shareholder lawsuits claim were used to inflate the value of PHV stock to float a new issue.
Charles |
