Shares of Dillard's (NYSE: DDS) rose 35% yesterday. But the occasion wasn't a buyout or a great earnings report. Instead it was the news that hedge funds Barington Capital Group LP and Clinton Group want CEO William Dillard II fired over the company's dismal performance.You can read the investors' letter here -- it was attached to a 13-D filed with the SEC. A quick sample:
Despite the generous compensation that has been paid to Dillard family members, the performance of the company over the past ten years has been atrocious. . . . As significant shareholders of Dillard's, we therefore call upon you to work with the Board's Class A directors to IMMEDIATELY begin the process of looking for a new chief executive officer. We recommend that this new chief executive be someone with exceptional integrity and proven leadership and turnaround experience in the retail industry.
You can read the letter for more detail but the market's reaction tells you pretty much all you need to know. The stock was up 35% on the suggestion that the CEO be replaced -- on a day when the Dow was down more than 200 points. What else do you need?
Dillard's insiders bought a few shares of stock last week, perhaps in anticipation of this letter. But investors are likely to see through it: decades of under-performance are not undone by a few token insider buys.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-28-2008 @ 6:37PM
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