SCOTTSDALE Ariz. Kona Grill Inc. could be facing a static future, the company’s second-largest shareholder said in a letter offering $27.9 million to take the company private. —After months of shareholder unrest,
Following the resignation of Kona’s chief executive in mid-May, Mill Road Capital L.P. offered on May 18 to purchase the parent of the 22-unit upscale-casual chain for $4.60 a share, nearly double the May 15 closing price of $2.29 a share. —After months of shareholder unrest,
In a letter to Kona’s board, Thomas Lynch, senior managing director of Greenwich, Conn.-based Mill Road, said Kona was “at a crossroads,” and noted “the company does not have the capital required to resume growth at the end of 2009.” —After months of shareholder unrest,
It is the second time Mill Road, an investment firm that says it has approximately $250 million of committed equity capital, has made a bid for the casual-dining company. Scottsdale-based Kona rejected in March 2008 an offer by Mill Road to buy all of the restaurant company’s outstanding stock for $10.75 a share. —After months of shareholder unrest,
A pitched battle between Mill Road, which already owns 640,062 Kona Grill shares, or about 10 percent of the company, and the chain’s management led to the May 11 resignation of Marcus E. Jundt as chairman, president and chief executive. —After months of shareholder unrest,
In documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mill Road said: “The recent departure of the company’s chairman and CEO has placed Kona at a crossroads. The company and its employees are facing a very difficult operating environment for restaurants without the leadership and vision that a permanent CEO should provide.… We strongly believe that Kona has a significantly better chance of successfully addressing the competitive, leadership and capital issues as a private company.” —After months of shareholder unrest,
Shareholders in late April approved a “withhold authority” vote on Jundt’s leadership during the company’s annual meeting. —After months of shareholder unrest,
The company said Mark Bartholomay, Kona’s chief operating officer, would serve as interim president and chief executive until a permanent successor to Jundt was named. —After months of shareholder unrest,
In a statement issued following Jundt’s resignation, he said: “It is in the company’s best interest for me to step aside at this time. I’ve been involved with the company since its inception, and I always will believe strongly in the Kona Grill concept and brand.… If our stockholders believe it is time for a new steward of the company, then I must respect their views and decision.” —After months of shareholder unrest,
Mark Zesbaugh, chairman of Kona Grill’s audit committee, said the board respected Jundt’s decision. —After months of shareholder unrest,
“His energy and his enthusiasm for the Kona concept were significant factors in the development of the company,” Zesbaugh said. —After months of shareholder unrest,
Separately, reports from Minnesota indicated a new Kona Grill in Eden Prairie had been put on hold. A “For Lease” sign recently was placed on the property. —After months of shareholder unrest,
Shareholder discontent had been brewing at Kona since late last year. In late December, the company announced it would be selling discounted shares to Marcus Jundt’s father, James Jundt, who already owned 4.9 percent of the company’s stock. The $1 million deal equated to $1.19 a share at a time when shares were trading at more than $2. Mill Road Capital, which had offered to take Kona Grill private earlier in 2008, on Jan. 1 tendered an alternative $1 million deal to Kona’s board to help the company raise capital. —After months of shareholder unrest,
At that point, Kona had about 6.5 million shares outstanding, and over the prior 52 weeks the stock had traded as high as $14.77 per share and as low as $1.10 per share. On Jan. 2, shares closed at $2.46. —After months of shareholder unrest,
Kona’s largest shareholder is reportedly Chicago-based William Blair & Co. —After months of shareholder unrest,
On Jan. 2, Justin Bennitt, managing member of Clarke Bennitt LLC, an investment management firm in Chadds Ford, Pa., wrote to the Kona chief executive to express his shock at the sale agreement. —After months of shareholder unrest,
“Offering shares to James Jundt [your father] at a ridiculously low price of $1.19 for nearly 5 percent of the company is completely unacceptable,” Bennitt wrote. “To further compound the liquidity problem by offering stock to your father at an all-time-low price crosses the boundaries of good taste and in my humble opinion is not operating as a shareholder-friendly CEO.” —After months of shareholder unrest,
Such complaints led to the vote on April 30 at the company’s annual meeting, when about 53 percent of Kona’s voting shares withheld their support for Marcus Jundt. Jundt was named chief executive on Feb. 1, 2006. Share prices have dropped 78 percent since then. —After months of shareholder unrest,
For the quarter ended March 31, Kona reported a net loss of $1.1 million, or 17 cents a share, compared to a net loss of $673,000, or 10 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. —After months of shareholder unrest,
The company said its first-quarter revenue rose 7.5 percent to $19.5 million, driven by the openings of four new restaurants since June 2008. Same-store sales fell 9.6 percent for the quarter.— [email protected] —After months of shareholder unrest,
