B. Riley co-CEO offers to acquire investment bank; shares surge

In a regulatory filing on Friday, Bryant Riley, B. Riley Financial (RILY) Financial's co-CEO, proposed to buy the investment bank. The news has seen B. Riley's shares surge more than 27% in early trading.

The $7 per share offer represents a 39% premium to B. Riley stock's last close.

The stock has plunged 70% so far this week, underscoring the challenges the Los Angeles-based bank is facing, particularly concerning its investment in Franchise Group (FRG), the parent company of Vitamin Shoppe.

Riley, the co-founder and biggest shareholder of the investment bank, stated that he will not go through with the transaction unless he receives approval from a special committee comprising independent directors of the bank's board.

In a letter, Riley stated: "The current public company paradigm requires us to focus on short-term objectives and allocate unnecessary attention and time on constituencies who are not aligned with the owners of the business."

On Monday, B. Riley shares plunged almost 52% after it released its preliminary second-quarter results, revealing it has suspended its dividend. The financial services firm said it expected to report a net loss for the quarter ended June 30, in the range of $435 to $475 million, or a $14 to $15 loss per share.

"Our second quarter results were negatively impacted by non-cash losses, the overwhelming majority of which relate to performance of our investment in Franchise Group, Inc. ("FRG") and our Vintage Capital loan receivable, which is primarily collateralized by equity interests in FRG," said Bryant Riley.

Source: Investing.com