Matthews International beats back board challenge from Barington, preliminary votes show (updated)

Matthews International

20/02/2025 24:27

(Adds details about contest, comments from each side)
    By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
       NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Matthews International
 MATW.O  secured enough support to beat back a board-room
challenge from Barington Capital Group as its  shareholders
voted to re-elect all three of the casket maker's directors, two
sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
    Votes are still being counted before Matthews' annual
meeting on Thursday and investors can change their votes up
until the meeting, but by Wednesday evening the sources said
that preliminary tallies show the company emerged victorious.
    A Matthews representative declined to comment and a
Barington representative was not immediately available for
comment.
        Barington, which owns roughly 2% of Matthews' stock,
nominated three candidates, arguing new blood is needed in the
board room to replace long-serving Matthews CEO, Joseph
Bartolacci, and consider changes to strategy, including making
some divestments.
  
        But shareholders largely lined up behind the company and
rejected Barington's three candidates, including the fund's
founder James Mitarotonda. 
  
        The fight, one of the year's first to come to a vote,
suggests a growing number of unhappy investors are ready to push
corporations into expensive and time-consuming fights for board
seats, industry analysts said.
  
        The company last week announced corporate governance
changes aimed at pushing up the stock price. It promised to
appoint a new independent board chair by next year's annual
meeting, select a new independent director with experience in
batteries and EV technology solutions, and ask shareholders to
amend the company's bylaws next year to ensure all directors
stand for election annually.
  
        This was Barington's first proxy fight since 2015 and it
had the backing from three proxy advisory firms who all
recommended that investors elect all three of Barington's
candidates to the 11-member board.
  

 (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Sandra Maler and
Stephen Coates)
 ((svea.herbst@thomsonreuters.com; +617 233 2138; Reuters
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