Mossimo Founder Withdraws Buyout Bid
Mossimo Giannulli, founder of mass-market specialist Mossimo Inc., withdrew his bid Tuesday to acquire all of the business’s outstanding public shares and take the company private. Formerly a manufacturer, Mossimo now operates as designer and licensor of the Mossimo brand, which is sold principally at Target Corp. stores.
Giannulli, chairman and co-chief executive officer, is Mossimo’s majority shareholder, owning approximately 65 percent of the company. In April, Giannulli announced his intent to purchase the outstanding shares for $4 each. A quarterly report filed Aug. 11 with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that the board of directors appointed a special committee to consider and evaluate Giannulli’s proposal on April 19.
The same report hinted that other independent parties were interested in acquiring shares and that the special committee was “in the process of reviewing Mr. Giannulli’s proposal as well as any indications of interest expressed by other third parties.”
A statement issued by the company said that while Giannulli “remained interested in acquiring the company’s publicly held shares, he did not intend to make a new bid at the company’s current stock trading levels.”
At press time, Mossimo was trading on the NASDAQ at $4.95 per share and the stock had maintained a 50-day price average of $4.50. It reached a 52-week high of $6.20 on Aug. 12.
Mossimo’s net earnings for the second quarter ending June 30 were $2.2 million on revenues of $8.1 million. The majority of Mossimo’s earnings are generated through Target, which is the company’s primary domestic licensee. In January, Target opted to extend its licensing agreement with Mossimo through Jan. 31, 2008.
—Erin Barajas
