NEW YORK, Sept. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Harwood
Feffer LLP (www.hfesq.com) is investigating potential claims
against the board of directors of Sealy Corp. ("Sealy" or the
"Company") (NYSE: ZZ) concerning whether the board has breached its
fiduciary duties to shareholders.
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On March 11, 2012, a Sealy
shareholder owning approximately 14.5% of Sealy's outstanding
shares sent a letter to the Company expressing concern about
certain issues related to the composition and decision-making of
the Company's board. Specifically, from 2004 to 2008, Sealy
was controlled by its majority shareholder, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
& Co. L.P. ("KKR"). KKR no longer owns the majority of
the Company but continues to be Sealy's largest shareholder owning
46% outstanding common stock. Even though KKR does not own
the majority of Sealy, it is represented by 7 of the 9 Sealy
directors, or 78% of the board. The remaining 53% of public
shareholders have no board representation.
Sealy's KKR dominated boards have pursued a strategy whereby the
Company has been overloaded with debt and has failed to adequately
fund advertising initiatives for its products. As a result,
since Sealy went public its common equity has lost almost 90% of
its value. By contrast, the Company's competitors who spent
more on advertising have seen their common equity values and market
shares increase substantially. Moreover, KKR has caused Sealy
to pay over $52 million since 2004 in
fees for consulting services provided by KKR even though many of
the consulting services are questionable, ineffective, and
unnecessary.
Our investigation concerns whether the Sealy board of directors
has breached its fiduciary duties to shareholders, grossly
mismanaged the Company, and/or committed abuses of control in
connection with the foregoing.
If you own Sealy shares and wish to discuss this matter with us,
or have any questions concerning your rights and interests with
regard to this matter, please contact:
Robert I. Harwood, Esq.
Benjamin Sachs-Michaels
Harwood Feffer LLP
488 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10022
Phone Numbers: (877) 935-7400
(212)935-7400
Email:
bsachsmichaels@hfesq.com
Website: http://www.hfesq.com
Harwood Feffer has been
representing individual and institutional investors for many years,
serving as lead counsel in numerous cases in federal and state
courts. Please visit the Harwood Feffer LLP website
(http://www.hfesq.com) for more information about the firm.
Attorney Advertising. © 2012 Harwood Feffer LLP. The law firm
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(www.hfesq.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a
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SOURCE Harwood Feffer LLP