Egan Jones recommends Pitney Bowes shareholders to vote for all dissident nominees
May 2 (Reuters) - Proxy advisory firm Egan Jones on Tuesday recommended Pitney Bowes Inc shareholders to vote for all five dissident nominees that investment firm Hestia Capital has proposed for the board of directors to unlock the shipping and mailing company's full potential.
Hestia wants a new board to explore alternative strategies for the global e-commerce segment and focus on cash-generating units such as Presort Services, its mail aggregation business, and SendTech Solutions, its postage meter business.
"We strongly believe that the management and the board are clearly executing a failed strategy," Egan Jones said. "We believe that the company is in a crucial stage where it needs a positive reinforcement from a newly reconstituted board and management."
Egan Jones' recommendation comes a week after Institutional Shareholder Services backed four of the five dissident candidates. Recommendations from ISS and its smaller rival Glass Lewis often influence how large shareholders will vote on who sits on the board or proposed mergers.
Pitney Bowes is valued at $592.6 million, down from its peak of $2 billion when CEO Marc Lautenbach joined in 2012.
Investors will have a chance to cast votes at the company's annual meeting on May 9 unless a settlement is reached beforehand.
Pitney Bowes was not immediately available for a Reuters request for comment.
(Reporting by Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)
