(Bloomberg) — Activist investor Ryan Cohen is nearing a settlement at Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. that would see three new directors appointed to the retailer’s board, according to people familiar with the matter.
It’s unclear who would be appointed to the board as part of a settlement. A deal could be reached as early as Friday, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information was private.
Cohen’s RC Ventures, which disclosed a 9.8% stake in Bed Bath & Beyond this month, had called on the retailer to implement several changes, including exploring a sale of its Buybuy Baby business or the entire company.
Some of the nominees are expected to join a strategic review committee for Buybuy Baby, the people said.
Representatives for Cohen and Bed Bath were not immediately available for comment.
Cohen argued the company needs to narrow its focus and maintain the right inventory mix to meet demand. The company responded by saying it would carefully review his letter and hoped to engage constructively with him.
Cohen, co-founder of Chewy Inc. and chairman of GameStop Corp., has had a strong following of retail traders who piled into shares of both the pet supply chain and video-game retailer at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. GameStop surged 688% last year and 210% in 2020.
Shares in GameStop rallied this week after Cohen bought 100,000 shares in the beleaguered video game retailer, boosting his stake to 11.9%.
“I put my money where my mouth is,” Cohen said in a tweet late Tuesday.
It’s the second time Bed Bath has been targeted by activist investors. In 2019, the retailer was pushed to revamp its strategy by a group of investors, including Ancora Holdings, Macellum Capital Management and Legion Partners Capital Management. That fight also resulted a settlement that saw four new directors appointed to its board.
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