Digital media and content company Vinco Ventures (NASDAQ:BBIG) is seeing shares drop Tuesday morning after several press releases were issued Monday.
What Happened: Vinco Ventures announced Monday that Ted Farnsworth, who was recently named co-CEO of the company, had been terminated. Lisa King, who previously served as CEO of Vinco Ventures and was the President of ZVV Media Partners, was also terminated. The company also terminated Chief Security Officer Erik Noble and Chairman of the Board Roderick Vanderbilt.
Together, the group is referred to as “the Farnsworth Group” and are alleged to have attempted a hostile takeover of the company.
The terminations were announced in a press release Monday that does not appear on the Vinco Ventures website and is being disputed by the company.
In the same press release, the company said a Form 8-K incorrectly stated Farnsworth had been appointed as the company’s co-CEO. The company said the board of directors held a meeting on July 17 and decided to terminate King and replace her with John Colucci as interim CEO.
On July 21, the company held another meeting and rescinded King’s termination and made her President of ZVV. The Board also made Colucci and Farnsworth co-CEOs and instructed a corrective 8-K to be filed, which was blocked by the Farnsworth Group, according to the press release.
“I was willing to step in as the company enters into a new phase to stabilize the company and implement immediate cost-savings plans and aggressively pursue revenue generating programs with strategic partners,” Colucci said. “The company believes it thwarted a hostile takeover attempt for no consideration by the Farnsworth Group.”
Separately, the company announced Monday its special meeting of shareholders was postponed from Tuesday, July 26, 2022, to Tuesday Aug. 23, 2022. The postponement was done to provide additional time for shareholders to vote on proposals.
Vinco Ventures is the owner of the subsidiary ZVV Media Partners, which is a joint venture of Vinco Ventures and ZASH Global. ZVV Media Partners is the 80% owner of Lomotif Private Limited.
Benzinga has reached out for comment from Vinco Ventures and will update readers with details as they emerge.
BBIG Price Action: Vinco Ventures shares are down 16% to $0.84 on Tuesday, versus a 52-week range of $0.98 to $5.49.
Related Link: Exclusive: Zash Global Media Co-Founder Explains Miscommunication Involving Vinco Venture Management
