Genesco Inc said its shareholders voted to approve the acquisition of
the company by Finish Line Inc at a special meeting on Monday.
About 73 percent of the shares present and voting at the special
meeting voted in favor of the proposed deal.
If the merger is completed, the holders of Genesco common stock will be
entitled to receive $54.50 in cash, without interest, for each share of
Genesco common stock owned by such holders.
A second vote to approve the redemption of the employees subordinated
preferred stock was deferred due to the lack of a quorum. The
redemption is not a condition of the merger and Genesco said it
expected to hold a later shareholder meeting to address this issue.
As reported, Finish Line said last month it would evaluate its options
for the planned acquisition after Genesco posted a surprise quarterly
loss. FINL has hired Moelis Advisors, a division of Mercanti
Securities LLC, as a financial and capital markets adviser after
Genesco's unexpected loss.
Finish Line said on Friday that UBS Loan Finance LLC and
UBS Securities LLC, which had committed to financing the deal for The
Finish Line, said in letters that they were “extremely concerned about
the apparent deteriorating financial position” at Genesco. In the
second quarter ended Aug. 4, Genesco reported a loss of $4.2 million,
or 19 cents per share.
Finish Line made the $54.50-per-share offer for the
athletic footwear and apparel retailer in June. Genesco management had
earlier rejected a $51-per-share offer by Foot Locker Inc., saying it
was not in the best interest of shareholders.
