Barnes & Noble on the Block
GDA Staff -- Gifts and Dec, 8/4/2010 11:12:02 AM
New York — Major book retail chain Barnes & Noble is "considering strategic alternatives" to increase stock price, 
including the sale of the company.
It's working already: shares, which had dropped by a third this year, increased more than 26 percent in after-hours trading because of the announcement, according to MSN.com.
Barnes & Noble founder Leonard Riggio, who controls about 29 percent of the company's stock, is a possible bidder: he is considering forming an investor group to take the company private.
Another potential bidder could be investor Ron Burkle. His Yucaipa Companies owns 19 percent of the company's stock, and he wants to raise his stake to 37 percent, but was prevented by the company's "poison pill" plan, designed to prevent takeover attempts. In May he took the company to court, saying the plan unfairly favors Riggio and his family. Burkle has said he isn't interested in a takeover, according to the Seattle Times, but expects to propose a slate of three new directors at the next annual meeting, to be held by Sept. 30.
As of May 1, Barnes & Noble operated 720 bookstores in 50 states, 637 bookstores on college campuses and an e-commerce site.
The sale announcement came just two days after Barnes & Noble announced it would expand its in-store e-reader displays to full-service, 1,000 square foot eReading Nook Boutiques.
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