Shareholders of the American Greetings Corporation on Wednesday approved a $606 million buyout of the company by its founding family, ending a months-long negotiation over the deal.
The buyout at $19 a share received support from 81 percent of the voting power of the outstanding shares, the company said on Wednesday. Excluding the stock owned by the buyers, the deal received support from 67 percent of shares.
American Greetings, the No. 2 paper card maker after Hallmark, is now set to be privately owned by the Weiss family, which has a roughly $44 million stake giving it 43 percent of the vote. In order to be approved, the deal had to secure support from a majority of the shares unaffiliated with the family’s vote.
The deal is expected to close on or about Aug. 9.
Wednesday’s outcome comes after months of back-and-forth negotiations since the initial offer of $17.18 a share was announced in September, Steven M. Davidoff wrote in the Deal Professor column.
After discussions with a special committee of independent directors of the company, the Weiss family revised its bid to $18.20 a share in March. But the offer continued to face opposition from a large shareholder, TowerView, the investment company run by Daniel Tisch. The offer of $19 a share was announced in July.
The buyout showcased a rare example of shareholders flexing their power, Mr. Davidoff wrote.
“In years past, shareholder power was a hollow one,†Mr. Davidoff wrote. American Greetings was “the first test of this new shareholder attitude.â€
Shares of American Greetings rose 0.2 percent on Wednesday morning, to $19 a share.
