INTELIQUENT, INC. (NASDAQ:IQNT) Files An 8-K Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain OfficersItem 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On December 12, 2016, the Compensation Committee (the “Committee”) of the Board of Directors of Inteliquent, Inc. (the “Company”) approved the acceleration of vesting of certain restricted stock awards held by Matthew Carter, Jr., the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. The Committee approved the accelerated vesting in order to preserve certain compensation-related corporate income tax deductions for the Company that may otherwise be disallowed through the operation of Section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended (the “Code”), in connection with the Company’s merger (the “Merger”) with Onvoy, LLC (“Onvoy”). Specifically, the Committee approved the accelerated vesting of all or a portion of two separate restricted stock awards as follows: (1) 2,850 shares of restricted stock that were initially scheduled to vest on June 22, 2017 and (2) 2,234 shares of restricted stock that were initially scheduled to vest on February 22, 2017. The restricted stock awards were previously granted under the Company’s Amended and Restated 2007 Long Term Equity Incentive Plan.
In approving the accelerated vesting of the awards, the Committee considered, among other things, the projected value of the corporate income tax deductions that may be lost as a result of the effect of Section 280G of the Code; the Company’s belief that its merger with Onvoy is likely to close; and the benefits accruing to the Company resulting from providing Mr. Carter with the additional financial incentive to remain with the Company through the close of the Merger.
The estimated value of the restricted stock awards being accelerated is approximately $117,440, which amount is based upon the closing price of the Company’s common stock on December 12, 2016 of $23.10.
Mr. Carter also exercised options to purchase 11,616 shares of the Company’s common stock. All of these stock options had already vested. Mr. Carter immediately sold 10,200 of those shares into the market to pay for the exercise price and estimated withholding taxes. These actions, when taken together with the accelerated vesting of restricted stock awards discussed above, may limit the amount of excise tax that may be payable by Mr. Carter to Section 280G of the Code.
Mr. Carter has agreed to hold the remaining 1,416 shares acquired through the option exercise and the 5,084 shares of restricted stock for which vesting was accelerated as discussed above through the closing of the Merger. Mr. Carter has also informed the Company that he intends to vote all of his shares of common stock in favor of approving the Merger at the Company’s upcoming stockholders meeting.
Item 8.01 Other Events.
The information set forth under Item 5.02 is incorporated herein by reference.
Important Information and Where to Find It
In connection with the proposed transaction contemplated by the Merger Agreement, the Company will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and furnish to the Company’s stockholders a definitive proxy statement. The preliminary proxy statement was filed with the SEC on December 2, 2016. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION, THE COMPANY’S STOCKHOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT CAREFULLY IN ITS ENTIRETY WHEN IT BECOMES AVAILABLE AND ANY OTHER DOCUMENTS TO BE FILED WITH THE SEC IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION OR INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE INTO THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT (IF ANY) BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND THE PARTIES TO THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION. Investors and stockholders may obtain a free copy of documents filed by the Company with the SEC at the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, investors and stockholders may obtain a free copy of the Company’s filings with the SEC at the Company’s website at http://ir.inteliquent.com/sec.cfm or by directing a written request to: Inteliquent, Inc., 550 West Adams Street, Suite 900, Chicago, Illinois 60661, Attn: Investor Relations.
The Company and certain of its directors, executive officers, and certain other members of management and employees of the Company may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from stockholders of the Company in favor of the proposed transaction. Information about directors and executive officers of the Company is set forth in the proxy statement for the Company’s 2016 annual meeting of stockholders, as filed with the SEC on Schedule 14A on April 8, 2016. Additional information regarding these individuals and other persons who may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies, as well as any direct or indirect interests they may have in the proposed transaction, is included in the preliminary proxy statement and will be included in the definitive proxy statement with respect to the proposed transaction that the Company will file with the SEC and furnish to the Company’s stockholders.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements herein regarding the proposed transaction contemplated by the Merger Agreement, future financial and operating results, benefits and synergies of the transaction, future opportunities for the companies and any other statements about future expectations and the intent of any parties about future actions constitute “forward-looking statements” as defined in the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as “believe,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “intends,” “should,” “estimates” or similar expressions. Such statements are based upon current beliefs, expectations and assumptions and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including: (1) conditions to the closing of the transaction may not be satisfied; (2) the transaction may involve unexpected costs, liabilities or delays; (3) the business of the Company may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the transaction; (4) the outcome of any legal proceedings related to the transaction; (5) the Company may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; (6) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the Merger Agreement; (7) the ability to recognize benefits of the transaction; (8) risks that the transaction disrupts current plans and operations and the potential difficulties in employee retention as a result of the transaction; and (9) other risks to consummation of the transaction, including the risk that the transaction will not be consummated within the expected time period or at all. If the transaction is consummated, stockholders unaffiliated with the proposed transaction will cease to have any equity interest in the Company and will have no right to participate in its earnings and future growth. The foregoing review of important factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with statements that are included herein and in the Company’s filings with the SEC, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015, which are available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. The Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable; however, undue reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations. All written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to the Company, Onvoy or the Sponsors (as defined in the Merger Agreement) or persons acting on any of their behalf are qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. Further, forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company, Onvoy and the Sponsors hereby disclaim any obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date hereof unless required by law. Past financial or operating performance are not necessarily reliable indicators of future performance and you should not use our historical performance to anticipate results or future period trends.
About INTELIQUENT, INC. (NASDAQ:IQNT)
Inteliquent, Inc. is a provider of voice telecommunications services primarily on a wholesale basis. The Company offers its services using an all-Internet Protocol (IP) network, which enables to deliver connectivity for a range of media, including voice, and data and video. The Company’s solutions enable carriers and other providers to deliver voice traffic or other services where they do not have their own network. These solutions are called off-net services. It also provides solutions to customers, such as over-the-top (OTT) providers. The Company offers a range of services, including Local Transit Service, Long Distance Service, Switched Access Service, International Voice Service, Direct Inward Dialing Service and 8XX (Toll-Free) Service. The Company offers an alternative to facilitate the exchange of local traffic between various carriers by using its tandem switches instead of the Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers’ (ILECs’) tandems or direct connects. INTELIQUENT, INC. (NASDAQ:IQNT) Recent Trading Information
INTELIQUENT, INC. (NASDAQ:IQNT) closed its last trading session down -0.30 at 22.77 with 150,288 shares trading hands.