The Lakewood-based Einstein Noah Restaurant Group has announced that its board of directors has authorized a review of the company’s options, including a possible merger or sale.
The company said it is taking the action “to maximize value for all stockholders”.
As part of the evaluation process, the board has selected Piper Jaffray to serve as its financial advisor and Bryan Cave HRO to serve as its legal advisor.
E. Nelson Heumann, chairman of the the board of Einstein Noah, said that given the company’s “current momentum and strength of industry trends, the board has determined a broad evaluation of strategic alternatives to maximize value for all stockholders is now warranted.”
However, the company added that there is “no assurance” that the evaluation will result in a sale of the company or any other alternative.
It added that there is no timetable for the review. It also said the company doesn’t intend to disclose developments regarding the process unless a specific transaction is recommended by the board of directors or disclosure is deemed appropriate.
In the statement, the company said that as of March 31, Greenlight Capital, LLC and its affiliates own approximately 64 percent of the company’s common stock and as a result Greenlight Capital has sufficient voting power, without the vote of any other stockholders, to determine “whether a change in control of the company can occur.”
Einstein Noah Restaurant Group operates and licenses locations under Einstein Bros. and Noah’s New York Bagels and primarily franchises locations under the Manhattan Bagel brand . The company has 777 restaurants in 39 states and the District of Columbia.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
