“The Family Dollar Board of Directors and management team have worked diligently to advance the best interests of all of the company’s stockholders,” says Family Dollar chairman and CEO.
Family Dollar Stores Inc. announced that, based on a preliminary count of the votes cast at the company’s Special Meeting of Stockholders, Family Dollar stockholders voted to approve the proposed merger with Dollar Tree Inc.
Based on the preliminary count, approximately 84 million shares were voted in favor of the merger proposal. The favorable vote represents 74% of the total outstanding and 89% of the total shares voted. As of Oct. 30, 2014, the record date for the Special Meeting, there were approximately 114 million shares of Family Dollar common stock outstanding.
“We are pleased with the outcome of today’s vote, and I want to thank Family Dollar stockholders for their support throughout this process,” said Howard Levine, chairman and CEO of Family Dollar. “The Family Dollar Board of Directors and management team have worked diligently to advance the best interests of all of the company’s stockholders, and we are grateful for the support we received for the merger proposal. We are also very appreciative of Family Dollar’s talented and committed team members, who have remained focused on serving our customers throughout this process. We look forward to completing the transaction with Dollar Tree and remain excited about the opportunity that this combination will create for our stockholders, team members, customers and other stakeholders.”
The proposed merger remains subject to approval by the Federal Trade Commission. As previously announced, Dollar Tree and Family Dollar have agreed to provide the FTC with four weeks’ notice prior to closing. Dollar Tree expects to initiate this four-week notice period (which may be terminated early by the FTC) after it has executed a consent decree with the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, which would permit FTC clearance and the closing of the merger as soon as March 2015.
The independent Inspector of Elections, IVS Associates Inc., will tabulate all proxies and ballots submitted at the Special Meeting. Final results will be released after the votes have been tabulated and certified, which Family Dollar expects to occur next week.
