Terra director nominees receive support of two proxy advisory firms

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., Nov. 11 - Terra Industries Inc. said Proxy Governance, Inc. and Egan-Jones Proxy Services recommend that the company's shareholders vote for Terra's three directors - Martha O. Hesse, Dennis McGlone and chairman Henry R. Slack - at the annual meeting on Nov. 20.

The proxy advisory firms' recommendations "reinforce our strong belief that Terra's board of directors, which has returned more than $1 billion in value to shareholders over the past four years, is best suited to continue executing on our focused and prudent strategy and driving shareholder value," Terra president and chief executive officer Michael Bennett said in a company news release.

Bennett said if CF Industries Holdings, Inc.'s nominees were elected, they would "work to advance CF's inadequate proposal and CF's self-serving interests at the expense of all other Terra shareholders."

On Monday, CF Industries chairman, president and CEO Stephen R. Wilson reached out to Terra stockholders, urging them to vote for CF Industries' three director nominees on Nov. 20.

Wilson, in a letter to Terra stockholders, said his company's enhanced offer gives them $32.00 per share in cash and 0.1034 of a share of CF Industries common stock for each share of Terra common stock they own and that the offer includes the $7.50-per-share special cash dividend declared by Terra.

As previously reported, Terra's board of directors rejected the offer and other prior offers from CF Industries.

Agrium wants CF Industries

CF Industries recently rejected Agrium Inc.'s revised offer to acquire CF Industries for $45.00 in cash plus one common share of Agrium for each CF Industries share.

Agrium extended its exchange offer for CF Industries' shares to midnight ET on Nov. 18 from Nov. 13.

Agrium, a Calgary, Alta., fertilizer company, began its unsolicited exchange offer in March 2009 for CF Industries after CF Industries rejected its offer in favor of pursuing a deal with Terra.

Terra is a Sioux City, Iowa, nitrogen products company.

Deerfield, Ill.-based CF Industries Holdings is the holding company for CF Industries, Inc., a producer and distributor of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizer products.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.