Akzo Nobel, the maker of Dulux paint, on Tuesday formally rejected a request by the hedge fund Elliott Management
and other shareholders to call a special meeting to replace the Dutch paint and chemicals company’s chairman, Antony Burgmans.
Elliott Management has been pressuring Akzo Nobel to engage in takeover discussions
and had threatened to take the company to court if it did not honor its request for a special meeting to replace the company’s chairman.
“The company was recently told by Anthem management
that Anthem intends to move its business when the company’s current contract with Anthem expires on Dec. 31, 2019, and that Anthem is not interested in continuing discussions regarding pricing concessions,” Express Scripts told Reuters.
Akzo Nobel rejected two prior takeover offers, but it said on Monday that it would “carefully review and consider” the latest proposal.
The rejection came a day after PPG Industries made a third takeover offer for Akzo
Nobel, saying the bid was its “one last invitation” to enter merger talks.
• Wells Fargo will ask shareholders at its annual general meeting to vote on whether
to remove members of the lender’s board, including Stephen W. Sanger, the chairman.