Food fight: Just Eat Takeaway faces shareholder backlash
By Toby Sterling
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Simply Eat Takeaway.com NV introduced the departure of its chairman and an investigation into one other senior government, hours earlier than dealing with shareholder criticism at a fiery annual assembly on Wednesday.
Supervisory Chairman Adriaan Nuehn, whose place had been below stress, wouldn’t search reappointment, Europe’s largest on-line meal supply agency mentioned previous to the assembly.
Individually, long-time Chief Working Officer Joerg Gerbig was below investigation for “attainable private misconduct at an organization occasion” and could be leaving the administration board not less than till it’s concluded, the corporate mentioned.
Shareholders criticised the current administration of the loss-making agency and questioned the way forward for its underperforming U.S. arm, Grubhub, bought final yr for $7.3 billion euros ($7.30 billion).
Grubhub’s profitability and valuation have been broken by caps on the commissions it’s allowed to cost eating places in key markets resembling New York. Additionally it is dealing with competitors from DoorDash and Uber Eats.
Activist investor Cat Rock, which has pushed for a sale or spin-off of Grubhub, urged the agency to shift focus to its core European enterprise.
“It has to occur, and it has to occur rapidly,” Cat Rock’s founder Alex Captain advised the assembly.
Captain requested for ensures the board would take a suggestion for Grubhub critically.
Nuehn replied that the corporate would “have a look at any supply that’s of curiosity to all stakeholders”.
Pieter Taselaar, founding companion at Lucerne Capital Administration, mentioned shareholders had misplaced religion in administration and referred to as for a radical strategic evaluate.
“Why not announce a full analysis of all choices, a full strategic evaluate of all property?” he requested.
Chief Govt Jitse Groen introduced final month he was exploring choices together with a sale of Grubhub.
Takeaway’s shares, which have slid greater than 40% in 2022 alone, fell one other 8.8% to 24.13 euros on Wednesday, down from round 110 euros in October 2020 and never removed from the corporate’s 2016 IPO worth of 23 euros.
“It’s clear that shareholders have issues concerning the challenges the corporate is dealing with,” Nuehn mentioned in an announcement confirming he wouldn’t search re-election.
The corporate’s Vice Chair Corinne Vigreux, a co-founder of Dutch electronics group TomTom, will assume Nuehn’s duties whereas a substitute is sought.
In a second announcement, the corporate mentioned its supervisory board had lately been knowledgeable of a proper grievance concerning Gerbig “regarding attainable private misconduct at an organization occasion”.
The corporate was knowledgeable of the grievance on Sunday, Nuehn advised the assembly.
Gerbig, who was mentioned to be cooperating with the investigation, didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Govt behaviour and therapy of workers have been below scrutiny in current few years, prompting a string of high-profile boardroom departures.
The corporate mentioned Gerbig’s time period would finish on the closing of Wednesday’s assembly, including it was attainable he might be put up for re-election if allegations in opposition to him proved unfounded.
In a observe, Credit score Suisse mentioned Gerbig was thought of “properly revered in public markets” and that the investigation would add to uncertainty across the firm.
SHAREHOLDER PRESSURE
Takeaway, as soon as a inventory market darling, noticed orders fall within the first quarter as the net meals ordering increase pale together with the COVID-19 pandemic in lots of key markets.
It reported a greater than 1 billion euro loss in 2021, although Groen has mentioned it’s on monitor to develop into worthwhile on an working foundation in 2023.
Each the corporate’s boards and Groen particularly have been criticised for the Grubhub buy.
Earlier this yr, Groen was compelled to defend a ski journey for workers to Switzerland in April as an pointless luxurious, given the corporate’s monetary scenario. He argued the advantages to morale after two troublesome years outweighed the prices.
Cat Rock, the corporate’s second-largest shareholder with a 6.88% stake, revealed an open letter https://justeatmustdeliver.com on April 25 urging shareholders to vote in opposition to the reappointment of Chief Monetary Officer Brent Wissink and the supervisory board.
That acquired some assist from different buyers, together with hedge fund Lucerne Capital Administration.
Nevertheless, resolutions to re-appoint members of the administration and supervisory board aside from Nuehn and Gerbig had been accepted.
($1 = $1.0000)
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Enhancing by Matt Scuffham, Lisa Shumaker and Mark Potter)
