Matt Martin
09:07 (BST)
11/03/2008
Related articles
Largest Take-Two shareholders slash stakes in company
As lawsuit demands right to elect company directors
Publisher Take-Two is feeling the wrath of its shareholders as its two biggest owners of stock have massively reduced their stakes in the company, while a shareholder lawsuit has demanded that stockholders have the right to elect directors at the company's annual meeting.
The publisher's largest shareholder Oppenheimer Funds has halved its stake in the company from 23 per cent to 11.5 per cent, or 8.8 million shares, reports Reuters.
FMR LLC, the Grand Theft Auto publisher's second largest owner of stock, has also slashed its stake from 14 per cent to 2.75 per cent, in a move that could undermine Take-Two's assertion that Electronic Arts' USD 2 billion acquisition offer for the company was too low.
Following Take-Two's refusal to discuss EA's offer and then arranging a large payout for company executives should the publisher be acquired, a shareholder lawsuit in a Delaware court has accused Take-Two of "breaches of fiduciary duty."
The lawsuit demands the rights for shareholders to nominate and elect directors at Take-Two's 2008 annual meeting.
Take-Two is due to report its earnings for the first quarter on Tuesday March 11. Yesterday, the company detailed severance plans for employees should the acquisition by Electronic Arts go ahead.
To comment on this article, or view other users comments, you need to register for the GamesIndustry.biz Network.
