Kohl’s receives letter from Wisconsin senator about buyout offers

The Kohl’s Corp. board has received a letter from a senator representing the company’s home state.

The letter, from Wisconsin’s Senator Tammy Baldwin, urged the retailer not to accept any offers that would entail dramatically growing debt levels, hiving off assets or increasing shareholder payouts at the expense of reinvesting in the business. The news was first reported by CNBC.

“I ask that you carefully consider each proposal’s long-term strategy and reject any offers that propose a sale-leaseback, increase the risk of bankruptcy, or imperil the jobs and retirement security of thousands of Wisconsin workers,” said Baldwin in the letter, according to the report.

The letter came days after Kohl’s acknowledged, amid ongoing pressure from activist investors, that it has received multiple non-binding proposals from companies interested in acquiring the chain. The company, which in February 2022 adopted a “poison pill” shareholder rights plan to avert a hostile takeover of its business after receiving takeover offers it felt undervalued the business, has authorized Goldman Sachs to assist with further due diligence on select bid proposals.

In her letter, Baldwin made reference to another Wisconsin-based Shopko, which was burdened with debt after it was acquired by Sun Capital Partners in 2005. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2019 and ultimately liquidated.

To read the full CNBC story, click here.