Nicastro out of the chair at Midway
Publisher Midway has announced that its current chairman, Neil Nicastro, will be resigning from the role immediately after its forthcoming annual shareholder's meeting, with a successor to be announced soon afterwards.
Publisher Midway has announced that its current chairman, Neil Nicastro, will be resigning from the role immediately after its forthcoming annual shareholder's meeting, with a successor to be announced soon afterwards.
The move comes after Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone increased his personal stake in the company from just under 50 per cent to its current total of 68 per cent, giving him overall control of the publisher.
Redstone - whose Midway investment is a private one and is not related to his role at Viacom - is believed to have made several recommendations regarding changes to the Midway board of directors in recent weeks.
Nicastro has served on the board of Midway for around 16 years, and was formerly also chief executive of the company - a position he held from 1996 until handing it over to current CEO David Zucker in 2003. A successor to the chairman's role is expected to be announced shortly after the June 10 meeting.
Analysts greeted the news of Redstone's intent to make changes to the Midway board with cautious optimism, but many remain unconvinced of the company's future prospects. "Considering the company's 17 consecutive quarterly losses, we believe that an investment in Midway is speculative," stated Wedbrush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter, who is maintaining a Hold rating on the firm's stock.