Barington-led group demands Syms' records, fights company's attempt to deregister shares

By Lisa Kerner

Charlotte, N.C., Jan. 23 - A member of the group of Syms Corp. shareholders led by Barington Capital Group, LP and Esopus Creek Advisors LLC sent a letter to the company demanding a copy of Syms' shareholder register and other related records.

The information will be used to determine whether Syms has 300 or more shareholders of record, either now or at any time prior to April 1, according to a schedule 13D filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Despite shareholder protests, Syms delisted from the New York Stock Exchange and is attempting to deregister its shares under the federal securities laws on April 1.

In a previous SEC filing, Syms said it voluntarily delisted based upon ownership by fewer than 300 holders of record of its shares and not due to its failure to satisfy any NYSE rule or standard.

Barington's group believes Syms' actions has "severely damaged shareholder value" as the company's stock price fell over 42% "destroying over $104 million in market capitalization," the schedule 13D filing stated.

As a result, members of the shareholder group have begun the process of registering some of their shares in their own names to boost the number of shareholders of record to 300 or more, preventing Syms from deregistering.

In addition, the shareholder group filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey, Chancery Division - Bergen County, against Syms' board of directors alleging that the directors breached their fiduciary duties in causing the company to delist its common stock and deregister its shares.

The shareholder group, with a 9.8% stake in Syms, believes there are over 1,000 shareholders of Syms, most of whom have their shares registered in "street name."

On Jan. 2, the stockholder group asked the company's board to reconsider its decision to delist Syms stock from the NYSE.

It was previously reported that Barington's group noted how the delisting will result in the suspension of SEC routine filings, thus limiting shareholders' access to financial information.

Syms is a Secaucus, N.J.-based off-price retailer.

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