Glass Lewis Joins ISS In Recommending Adverum Shareholders Vote for All Three Independent Sonic Director Nominees
May 06 2021 - 9:48AM
Business Wire
Cites “Prescience” of Sonic’s Arguments Related
to Studies of Safety Issues Regarding ADVM-022
Highlights Critical Skill Sets and Experience
that Sonic’s Fully Independent Nominees Would Bring to Board
Sonic Urges Adverum Shareholders to Vote on
GREEN Proxy Card FOR Election of All Three Independent and Highly
Qualified Director Nominees to Board
The Sonic Fund II, L.P. (“Sonic”), which beneficially owns
approximately 6.8% of the outstanding common stock of Adverum
Biotechnologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADVM) (the “Company” or “Adverum”),
today announced that leading proxy advisory firm Glass, Lewis &
Co., LLC (“Glass Lewis”) has joined Institutional Shareholder
Services Inc. (“ISS”) in recommending that Adverum stockholders
vote FOR the election of Sonic’s three independent, highly
qualified nominees (the “Nominees”) – Jean Bennett, Jodi Cook and
Herbert Hughes – for election to the Company’s Board of Directors
(the “Board”) at the upcoming 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
(the “2021 Annual Meeting”), which will be held on Wednesday, May
12, 2021.
In reaching its conclusion, Glass Lewis noted the
following:1
- “[S]ince the recent SUSAR event, the narrative of this proxy
contest has completely turned, in our view, to the point where the
board’s case against the Dissident now appears to be sorely lacking
in credibility, while the Dissident’s arguments (particularly that
the Company should direct greater attention towards resolving the
safety issues of ADVM-022) seemingly carry a great deal of
prescience.”
- “Considering the recent SUSAR event and the implications
thereof, we are inclined to agree with the Dissident’s case
for the board change being sought here.”
- “In our view, the Dissident has put forth a compelling slate
of director nominees, most of whom have relevant experience and
expertise in the medical field, who should be able to help the
Company to navigate through its current situation. In particular,
we highlight Dissident Nominees Jean Bennett and Jodi Cook, both
of whom have a great deal of experience and expertise in the gene
therapy field, as their biographies would attest to…”
- “Meanwhile, we note that Dissident Nominee Herbert Hughes has
extensive experience in the financial services industry, has held
leadership roles in a diverse range of businesses (gaming, oil
services, and investment banking), and currently serves as a
director of Byrna Technologies, a publicly-traded defense
technology firm. In our view, Mr. Hughes’ background and
experience, particularly in financial markets and capital
allocation, could help to round out the skill sets of, and provide
a complementary perspective to the Company’s board,
particularly one that is heavily weighted towards individuals with
backgrounds in various medical fields.”
- “[T]he recent SUSAR event has unfortunately laid bare the
Company’s shortcomings in addressing the inflammation issue of
its sole product candidate, ADVM-022. In light of the recent
developments, we believe that change at the board level is
warranted, and that the Dissident Nominees represent the more
compelling slate of director candidates for the Company at this
time.”
- “Accordingly, we recommend that shareholders vote on the
Dissident’s GREEN proxy card FOR all nominees.”
VOTE ON THE GREEN PROXY CARD TODAY
If you have voted a white card from Adverum,
a later-dated Green card will revoke that vote
If you have any questions or require any assistance with your
vote, please contact Saratoga Proxy Consulting, LLC, which is
assisting us, at its address and toll-free number listed on the
following page. For more information, fellow stockholders can visit
our website at https://www.saveadverum.com/investor-materials.”
If you have any questions
regarding your GREEN proxy card
or need assistance in voting your shares, please contact
Saratoga Proxy Consulting,
LLC
520 8th Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Stockholders may call
toll-free: (888) 368-0379
Banks and brokers call: (212)
257-1311
info@saratogaproxy.com
1 Permission to quote Glass Lewis was neither sought nor
obtained. Emphasis added.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210506005775/en/
Investors: Saratoga Proxy Consulting LLC John Ferguson /
Ann Marie Mellone 212-257-1311 jferguson@saratogaproxy.com /
amellone@saratogaproxy.com
Media: Sloane & Company Joe Germani / Sarah
Braunstein jgermani@sloanepr.com / sbraunstein@sloanepr.com
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