LL Flooring announced it has received another takeover offer, this time for $2.50 per share in cash—less than half the price offered by the same company last October.
The offer once again comes from Live Ventures Incorporated, a publicly traded holding company. In the announcement from LL Flooring, the company stated, "The LL Flooring Board remains in constructive discussions and is currently negotiating this latest proposal, which has not yet been accepted by the Board."
In the announcement, Nancy Taylor, independent chairperson of the LL Flooring board of directors, said, “We continue to work diligently with our external advisors to identify the best path for the future of LL Flooring and all of our shareholders. We look forward to progressing in the strategic review process, and the Board remains open to having discussions with interested parties and considering a transaction that appropriately reflects the Company’s value and prospects."
LL Flooring also announced it had entered into "a cooperation agreement with Live Ventures and Isaac Capital Group with regard to director nominations and the voting of their aggregate 3.8% ownership of LL Flooring common stock" at the stockholder meeting to be held on July 10. The company said that Isaac Capital Group had "previously nominated three individuals to stand for election to the LL Flooring board at the meeting and, in connection with the cooperation agreement, has now withdrawn these nominations and will vote its shares in support of the company’s directors."
Live Ventures subsidiary Marquis Industries purchased the Harris Flooring Group brands from Q.E.P. Co. Inc. for approximately $10 million last September. Earlier in 2023, LL Flooring rejected two unsolicited bids from its former founder and CEO Tom Sullivan’s private equity firm, F9 Investments—one in May for $5.76 per share in cash and one in November for $3.00 per share. In August LL Flooring’s board of directors announced it was seeking “strategic alternatives” for a potential merger or sale of the company.
As of press time of this article, LL Flooring stock was trading at $1.54 per share. One year ago, the stock was trading at $4.10 per share. The company reported a net income loss of $103.4 million in fiscal 2023.
