Hydro Flask Owner Turns Down Empower Brands' $37-a-Share Bid
Helen of Troy's board unanimously rejected an unsolicited offer from Empower Brands that valued the company at about $1.6 billion. It calls the timing opportunistic.
Helen of Troy, the company behind Hydro Flask, has rejected a takeover bid from Empower Brands. The board's vote was unanimous, and the company says the offer arrived at a convenient moment for the bidder.
An offer of $37 a share
Empower Brands proposed to buy all of Helen of Troy's outstanding common equity for $37 per share. That implies an enterprise value of about $1.6 billion. The bid was unsolicited, meaning Helen of Troy had not asked for it.
Helen of Troy operates Hydro Flask, Osprey, OXO and other brands. Empower Brands counts Black and Decker and Remington in its own portfolio.
Why the board said no
In a Wednesday press release, the company described the proposal as opportunistic. In its view the bid was timed "to exploit the dislocation in its stock price." Helen of Troy links part of that pressure to tariffs, which began after the Trump Administration changed trade policy last year.
The board also points to its own plan. Helen of Troy says it is making progress on a multiyear roadmap to restore momentum under CEO Scott Uzzell. In the board's view, staying the course is worth more in the long run than the Empower Brands proposal.
The dispute over confidentiality
Helen of Troy says it engaged actively with Empower Brands in private talks. Those talks stalled over a nondisclosure agreement. Empower Brands refused to sign one, Had it signed, Helen of Troy could have given the bidder further information.
Under that agreement, Empower Brands could not have made its interest or its offer public. The bid is now public.
Source: Retail Dive