Japan drugstore Tsuruha wins proxy battle with activist investor Oasis (updated)
10/08/2023 09:23
(Add vote result details in 6th paragraph)
By Makiko Yamazaki
TOKYO, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Tsuruha Holdings 3391.T on
Thursday won a proxy fight with an activist investor seeking to
reshuffle the board of directors, as the Japanese drugstore
chain received a majority of shareholder support for their
candidates.
Shareholders at their annual general meeting approved all 10
candidates nominated by the company and rejected all five
outside director nominees backed by Hong Kong-based Oasis
Management, Tsuruha said in a statement.
The proxy battle was about who should be on the board to
lead a successful mergers and acquisitions (M&A) strategy when
investors widely expect more consolidation among Japan's
fragmented drugstore industry.
Oasis, which owns 12.8% of Tsuruha, argued that the current
board dominated by founding family members could impede the
company from fairly evaluating consolidation opportunities.
Tsuruha said the board already has industry insiders with
knowledge and networks which it needs to pursue the best M&A
strategy.
According to vote results released by the company, President
Jun Tsuruha received support from 83.69% of shareholders, while
support for Oasis candidates ranged from 20.99% to 28.10%.
Retail giant Aeon 8267.T , Tsuruha's largest shareholder
with a 13% stake, said before the meeting it would support
Tsuruha.
Placing the drugstore business as one of key growth drivers,
Aeon also owns 51% of Welcia Holdings 3141.T and 10% of Kusuri
No Aoki Holdings 3549.T .
(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore
and Himani Sarkar)
((Makiko.Yamazaki@thomsonreuters.com; +81-3-4563-2805;))