, Columnist
Akzo Doesn't Worship Shareholder Value. Good for Akzo.
The Dutch company spurned a generous buyout offer because its ideals run deeper than Wall Street's.
Value proposition.
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Contrary to Wall Street conventional wisdom, shareholder value isn't the only value. And you won’t find a better recent example than the failed effort of Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries Inc. to take over Akzo Nobel NV, a Dutch paint and chemical manufacturer.
As detailed in an excellent story by Ellen Proper of Bloomberg, PPG's chief executive Michael McGarry spent three months, more or less nonstop, trying to persuade Akzo Nobel and its 70-year-old chairman, Antony Burgmans, to merge with his company. But, said McGarry in acknowledging defeat on Thursday, Akzo's board "consistently refused to engage." Indeed, Burgmans and chief executive Ton Buechner wouldn’t even return some of PPG's phone calls.