Woodbridge: Shareholders send strong message to Office Depot in form of withheld/against votes

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., May 8 - Five Office Depot Corp. directors received significant withheld/against votes at the annual meeting on April 23 based on certified election results, according to investors Woodbridge Equity Fund LLLP and Levitt Corp.

The investors said the May 5 final report of the inspectors of election lists the withheld/against votes as:

• Lee A. Ault, III: 80.66 million withheld/against votes, or 42.73%;

• David W. Bernauer: 68.59 million withheld/against votes, or 36.33%;

• Abelardo E. Bru: 65.59 million withheld/against votes, or 34.74%;

• Marsha J. Evans: 68.35 million withheld/against votes, or 36.20%; and

• W. Scott Hedrick: 68.13 million withheld/against votes, or 36.09%.

"The fact that five of the 12 Office Depot director nominees received such a large number of withhold votes should send a strong signal to the current board and management that shareholders are committed to holding this board accountable for the company's performance," Woodbridge Capital Corp. president Alan B. Levan said in a news release.

"We intend to continue to monitor the company's performance and progress in implementing its strategic turnaround plan in the months ahead," Levan added.

As previously reported, Woodbridge Equity and Levitt sought the election of Mark Begelman, former president and chief operating officer of Office Depot, and Martin Hanaka, the former CEO of Sports Authority, Inc., to the company's board.

Office Depot, a Delray Beach, Fla., office products company, had asked its shareholders to vote for its nominees, including current chairman and CEO Steve Odland and former CEO David Fuente.

© 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.