Report: Yahoo shareholder seeks compromise
A dissident shareholder is pushing Yahoo to accept a mixed board of directors drawn from company nominees and those presented by billionaire investor Carl Icahn, according to a report by Reuters.
Eric Jackson, manager of hedge fund Ironfire Capital and leader of shareholder group Yahoo Plan B, on Sunday said he would encourage his shareholder group Yahoo Plan B to elect five Yahoo directors and four Icahn nominees, Reuters reported. His group is made up of 150 Yahoo stockholders representing 3.2 million Yahoo shares.
"It's become clear over the last two weeks that many shareholders are reluctant to support the entire list of Icahn nominees," a planned Monday statement from Jackson reads, according to Reuters.
However, Reuters reported that a source familiar with the board's thinking said it would see no need to compromise with Icahn.
Icahn has proposed an alternative slate of board members as part of a bid to get Yahoo to agree to some sort of takeover by or deal with Microsoft. Icahn is backing a change of management, in part because he does not think that Microsoft can negotiate with the current board.
The move comes as both sides prepare for the August 1 proxy showdown over control of Yahoo's board.
Icahn's challenge took a hit on Friday, when Legg Mason Capital Management said it would back Yahoo's existing management at the company's shareholder meeting next month. The investment firm controls about 60.7 million shares of Yahoo, which represents about 4.4 percent of outstanding Yahoo stock.
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. Before joining CNET News in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers. E-mail Steven.
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