By Chelsey Dulaney
Stock index provider MSCI Inc. appointed three new directors to
its board, conceding to activist investor ValueAct Capital
Management LP's request for representation.
ValueAct said earlier this month that MSCI had rejected its
request to join, bucking a trend in which companies have lately
succumbed to such overtures.
Wayne Edmunds, D. Robert Hale and Wendy Lane will join the board
March 10, bringing the number of directors to 12 from nine. The
three new directors will be included with the company's nominees
for election at its annual meeting, and ValueAct has agreed to vote
for the company's entire slate of nominees.
Mr. Hale is a partner at ValueAct, while Ms. Lane is chairwoman
of investment firm Lane Holdings Inc. and Mr. Edmunds was the chief
executive of Invensys PLC until last year.
ValueAct has also agreed to a standstill agreement with MSCI,
restricting its ability to grow its stake in the company to more
than 14.9% or solicit proxies.
ValueAct has an 8.3% stake in MSCI, according to FactSet.
ValueAct Chief Executive Jeffrey Ubben said in a letter filed
publicly earlier this month that he first requested the board seat
at New York-based MSCI in August. ValueAct has an 8.3% stake in
MSCI, according to FactSet.
In August 2013, Microsoft's granting of a board seat to Mr.
Ubben's partner Mason Morfit was widely viewed as a watershed
moment for activists, and for ValueAct. The firm held less than 1%
of the stock, and Microsoft had never given a board seat to a
shareholder in such a fashion.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
Access Investor Kit for Schneider Electric SA
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=FR0000121972
Access Investor Kit for MSCI, Inc.
Visit
http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US55354G1004
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires