CBS Declares War on Shari Redstone
We're maintaining our moat ratings and fair value estimates on both CBS and Viacom.
CBS is specifically accusing National Amusements of breaching its fiduciary duty due to the actions of Shari Redstone. The lawsuit alleges that Redstone "improperly interjected herself into negotiations" and "acted to undermine CBS's highly lauded and successful management team in a series of escalating attacks." The board also claims that Redstone told a potential buyer to not make an offer for CBS and did so without the approval of the board. News reports have speculated that Redstone would attempt to stack the board at CBS with independent directors aligned with her views if the merger did not occur. Recent board appointee Richard Parsons, the former CEO of Time Warner, was the third independent director elected in the past year who is viewed as being an ally of Redstone.
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