Best Buy‘s (NYSE:BBY) founder has not made a bid to take the struggling chain private. Despite the lack of a bid, Best Buy shares surged about 5% in pre-market trading on Friday.
The big box electronics retailer said that Richard Schulze had until Thursday to make a bid under a prior agreement with the company’s board. Instead, sources told Bloomberg that Schulze had and attempted to obtain three seats on Best Buy’s board by acquiring a minority stake in the chain with a group of private equity firms, but those talks have ended.
Rumors had surfaced in recent weeks that Schulze had been unable to raise the needed financing for a takeover bid and was concentrating on taking a minority stake as an alternatives.
Schulze remains Best Buy’s biggest shareholder, controlling about 20% of its stock. He was forced to step down as chairman in June after it emerged that he had failed to inform the board of an improper relationship between ousted CEO Brian Dunn and a female employee.
In August, Schulze announced that he would make a bid to take Best Buy private, offering between $24 and $26 a share.
The company has hired turnaround expert Hubert Joly as its CEO and has announced job cuts at its Minnesota headquarters.
Shares of Best Buy in Friday pre-market trading.
