Kerkorian halts bid for shares
29 November 2007
by Howard Stutz
Las Vegas Gaming Wire
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — MGM Mirage majority shareholder Kirk Kerkorian
dropped his month-old bid to acquire additional shares of a San
Antonio-based petroleum refining corporation after the company’s board
adopted a poison-pill anti-takeover defense.
The 90-year-old Los Angeles billionaire, who already holds almost 4
percent of Tesoro Corp. through Tracinda, his wholly owned investment
subsidiary, sought to purchase an additional 16 percent stake in the
company for $64 a share, a cash tender offer of $1.4 billion. The
transaction was set to expire Dec. 6.
Last week, Tesoro’s board adopted a shareholder’s right’s plan that
reduced the likelihood that a potential purchaser could gain control
of the company through an open market accumulation of stock.
The Tracinda deal would not have triggered the plan because Kerkorian
would have held just less than 20 percent.
In a statement, Tracinda called the plan "Draconian" and "inhibits
value for all Tesoro shareholders by, among other things, restricting
the ability of shareholders to vote, sell or acquire Tesoro shares
freely."
Kerkorian, who controls 54 percent of MGM Mirage, has invested over
the years in the automotive, film and airline industries. This fall,
Kerkorian rose 19 places to No. 7 on the Forbes list of richest
Americans, with an estimated net worth of $18 billion, due largely to
investment gains from MGM Mirage.