NEW YORK, Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Clinton Group, Inc.
("Clinton" or "CGI"), a stockholder of Campus Crest Communities,
Inc. ("Campus Crest", "CCG" or the "Company") (NYSE: CCG),
announced today that it has recently provided notice of its
intention to nominate:
- Scott Arnold, Senior Portfolio
Manager, Private Equity and Asset Backed Securities at Clinton
Group, Inc.
- Randall H. Brown, former
Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of
Education Realty Trust, Inc.
- William A. Finelli, former
Global Chief Operating Officer of the real estate platform of
BlackRock Inc.
- Raymond C. Mikulich, Managing
Partner and Chief Investment Officer for Ridgeline Capital Group
and former head of Apollo Global Real Estate Private Equity
Investment
for election to the board of directors (the "Board") of Campus
Crest at the upcoming 2015 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. These
nominees would collectively bring decades of real estate
experience, financial acumen, and a track record of equity value
creation to Campus Crest.
Clinton believes that the Board of Campus Crest should be held
accountable for the years of underperformance and disappointing
shareholder returns. "For far too long, stockholders have suffered
under a Board that has overseen significant value destruction,"
said Joseph A. De Perio, Senior
Portfolio Manager at Clinton. "Our intention is simple – to let
shareholders decide on the composition of the leadership of the
company."
With the recent resignations of Ted W.
Rollins and Donnie Bobbit,
the ex-CEO and ex-CFO, respectively, the Company lacks permanent
top executive leadership today. "Several of our nominees are
qualified to be either the interim CEO or permanent CEO of the
Company if need be," said Mr. De Perio. "Given the decision to move
away from development activities, if our candidates are elected,
the newly constituted Board may decide that the best way to
maximize value to shareholders is to position the Company for a
sale to a strategic or financial buyer at a premium well in excess
of prevailing stock prices. At today's comparable companies'
FFO multiples, the implied stock price would be over $10.50 per share."
The Clinton independent nominees for the Company's Board
are:
Scott Arnold -
Scott Arnold has served as Senior
Portfolio Manager, Asset Backed Securities and Private Equity with
CGI since May 2007. Mr. Arnold has
been involved in the portfolio management of all asset-backed
strategies at CGI. Mr. Arnold has extensive experience in the
analysis, valuation, trading and marketing of mortgage-backed and
asset-backed securities. Mr. Arnold also heads CGI's effort in the
community bank space. Prior to joining CGI's ABS desk, he was
involved in research, restructuring and principal investing in
distressed debt and special situations investments at both CGI and
Source Capital Group, a boutique investment firm ("Source
Capital"). Mr. Arnold worked at CGI from June 2002 until August
2004 and Source Capital from June
2000 until June 2002 and from
September 2004 until April 2007. From 1983 until 1999, Mr. Arnold
worked in the mortgage backed securities area at several leading
investment banks including Salomon
Brothers and Smith Barney & Co. Mr. Arnold served
on the Board of Urban Trust Bank, a federally chartered community
bank that provides value oriented consumer and commercial banking
services through an extensive network of branches in Florida, from June
2009 until March 2014 and
served as its Chairman from October
2010 through the remainder of his tenure, and was previously
a director of Herald National Bank until its merger with
BankUnited.
Randall H. Brown –
Randall H. Brown is currently a
private investor and has been since June
2014. Previously, Mr. Brown was the Executive Vice
President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Education
Realty Trust, Inc., the second largest public student housing Real
Estate Investment Trust ("REIT") in the
United States, from January
2005 until June 2014. Mr.
Brown joined Education Realty Trust, Inc.'s predecessor company,
Allen & O'Hara, Inc., as its Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer
and Secretary in June 1999. Prior to
joining Allen & O'Hara, Mr. Brown served as director of
corporate finance for Promus Hotel Corporation (now part of Hilton
Hotels Corporation). Prior to his promotion to director of
corporate finance, Mr. Brown served as manager of capital analysis
and planning for Promus. Mr. Brown began his career at
PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP and also held various financial and
accounting positions at International Paper Company and Holiday
Inns, Inc. Mr. Brown currently serves on the Real Estate
Advisor Board at Fogelman College of Business at the University of Memphis and as an Advisory Board
Member, College of Business & Global Affairs, at the
University of Tennessee, Martin.
William A. Finelli –
William A. Finelli is currently
self-employed as a real estate consultant and has been serving in
this capacity since April 2014. Prior
to April 2014, Mr. Finelli was the
President of BlackRock Realty Advisors Inc. ("Black Rock Realty"),
a real estate investment company, and Global Chief Operating
Officer of the real estate platform of BlackRock Inc., an
investment management company. Mr. Finelli worked at BlackRock
Realty and its predecessor for 19 years, and he was responsible for
financial management, information technology, client accounting and
reporting, valuations and business operations. Mr. Finelli was also
a member of the Real Estate Global Executive Committee as well as
the Chairman of the Americas Investment Committee and Valuation
Committee. From 1983 until 1995, Mr. Finelli worked for the
Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Corporation in various capacities,
including as Chief Financial Officer of its real estate division
and its holding corporation for diversified subsidiaries.
Raymond C. Mikulich -
Raymond Mikulich currently serves as
the Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer for Ridgeline
Capital Group, LLC, and the Chief Executive Officer of HomeLPC,
LLC. Both entities are real estate investment companies based in
New York, NY. Previously,
Mr. Mikulich was head of Apollo Global Real Estate Private Equity
Investment ("Apollo Global") from September
2010 until December 2011.
During his over 20 year career at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
("Lehman Brothers") ending in 2007, Mr. Mikulich was a member of
the firm's Investment Committee and the co-head of the Real Estate
Private Equity Group and the Group Head of Global Real Estate
Investment Banking. He has served as a Trustee of the Urban Land
Institute, on the Board of The Real Estate Roundtable, as a member
of the Advisory Board of the National Association of Real Estate
Investment Trusts, as well as numerous other industry
organizations. Mr. Mikulich currently serves as a director of Altus
Group Limited, a commercial real estate consulting and advisory
firm based in Toronto, Canada and
has done so since December 2013. Mr.
Mikulich has also served as a board member of the Real Estate
Centers at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University and the University of Wisconsin.
This communication is not a proxy solicitation, which may be
done only pursuant to a definitive written proxy statement.
About Clinton Group, Inc.
Clinton Group, Inc. is a diversified asset management firm that
is a Registered Investment Advisor. The firm has been investing in
global markets since its inception in 1991 with expertise that
spans a wide range of investment styles and asset classes.
CLINTON RELATIONAL OPPORTUNITY MASTER FUND, L.P., CLINTON
RELATIONAL OPPORTUNITY, LLC, CLINTON GROUP, INC. AND GEORGE E. HALL (COLLECTIVELY, "CLINTON") AND
SCOTT R. ARNOLD, RANDALL H. BROWN AND WILLIAM A. FINELLI (TOGETHER
WITH CLINTON, THE "PARTICIPANTS") INTEND TO FILE WITH THE
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION (THE "SEC") A DEFINITIVE PROXY
STATEMENT AND ACCOMPANYING FORM OF PROXY CARD TO BE USED IN
CONNECTION WITH THE PARTICIPANTS' SOLICITATION OF PROXIES FROM THE
STOCKHOLDERS OF CAMPUS CREST COMMUNITIES, INC. (THE "COMPANY") FOR
USE AT THE COMPANY'S 2015 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS (THE
"PROXY SOLICITATION"). ALL STOCKHOLDERS OF THE COMPANY ARE ADVISED
TO READ THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT AND OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATED
TO THE PROXY SOLICITATION, WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY
WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION, INCLUDING ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION RELATED TO THE PARTICIPANTS. WHEN COMPLETED, THE
DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT AND AN ACCOMPANYING PROXY CARD WILL BE
FURNISHED TO SOME OR ALL OF THE COMPANY'S STOCKHOLDERS AND WILL BE,
ALONG WITH OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS, AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE ON THE
SEC'S WEBSITE AT HTTP://WWW.SEC.GOV/.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE PARTICIPANTS AND A DESCRIPTION OF THEIR
DIRECT OR INDIRECT INTERESTS BY SECURITY HOLDINGS WILL BE CONTAINED
IN EXHIBIT 2 TO THE SCHEDULE 14A TO BE FILED BY CLINTON WITH THE
SEC ON DECEMBER 4, 2014. THIS
DOCUMENT CAN BE OBTAINED FREE OF CHARGE FROM THE SOURCES INDICATED
ABOVE.
Contact: Clinton Group,
212-825-0400
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SOURCE Clinton Group, Inc.