Tegna, Standard Spar Over Board Vote, Q1 Results
Institutional Shareholder Services recommended against most of a slate of candidates for Tegna’s board supported by the broadcaster's largest shareholder Standard General (see personals section, this issue), Tegna said Friday. Tegna "shareholders should be concerned about the potentially heightened impact…
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of boardroom dysfunction, given the current environment,” said ISS. Standard and Tegna each created websites backing their preferred board candidates (see 2003310054). Tegna disagreed with the ISS report’s recommendation of a single Standard supported candidate, Colleen Brown. The report recommends Brown as a check on the current board’s evaluation of future deals. “The TEGNA Board’s actions demonstrate that such a check is not necessary,” the TV station owner said. Standard released a statement Monday from its CEO Soohyung Kim blasting Tegna’s Q1 performance, with revenue of $684 million, up 32 percent year-over-year, as “disappointing.” “Even after years of under-performance, the Board refuses to acknowledge the need for change,” Kim said. Tegna CEO Dave Lougee called the performance “strong” in the Q1 release. The company suspended its 2020 guidance and 2021 preliminary outlook: “The full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly with regard to the broader advertising industry, remains uncertain.” Current leadership has “successfully managed through recessionary operating environments in the past, and we are confident that we are well equipped to successfully navigate the challenges that will come,” the Tegna release said.