Vista Outdoor shareholders were scheduled to vote on Tuesday on the company’s plan to sell its ammunition business, but the vote was postponed again without a decision.
The company is considering whether to sell Kinetic Group to Czechoslovak Group (CSG Group) for $2.15 billion. An extraordinary shareholders’ meeting, originally scheduled for May 16, was postponed from June to July and is now scheduled for September 13. In the meantime, Vista has said it will consider all options for outdoor products company Revelyst, which operates 32 brands including Foresight Sports, Camp Chef, CamelBak, Simms Fishing and Fox.
“We are aware of the continued support from many shareholders for the CSG transaction, as well as the feedback from some shareholders regarding other strategic alternatives,” Vista Outdoor’s board chairman Mike Callahan said in a news release. “We take shareholder input very seriously and believe it is prudent for us to evaluate all strategic alternatives.”
Vista’s board in October selected CSG Group’s $1.91 billion offer, which required standard regulatory approvals as well as approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
Vista continues to negotiate with CSG to discuss a bid to acquire Kinetic Group, which includes Federal and its 1,500 employees at its Anoka facility, Remington, Speer and CCI. CSG Group has increased its bid multiple times throughout the acquisition process and is now reportedly considering acquiring Revelyst as well.
Vista will also be in talks with US-based investment group MNC Capital regarding a proposal to acquire all of Vista Outdoor’s shares, including Kinetic Group and Levelist, for $42 a share. MNC Capital has made multiple offers to acquire all of Vista Outdoor’s shares in a move to secure the ammunition business for a US-based company.
Vista will also reconsider its original plan to separate both Kinetic Group and Levelist into independent, publicly traded companies, as originally announced in May 2022. Gates Capital, Vista’s second-largest shareholder, said in a letter to Vista’s board of directors that the original separation plan was attractive because it would be tax-free.
The move to postpone the shareholder meeting again may also have been influenced by another institutional investor in Vista Outdoor. In an unusual move on Monday, GAMCO Asset Management said in a press release and a letter to Vista’s board of directors that it would vote against the CSG deal.
