Mike Fleming

Lionsgate has recommended to shareholders that they spurn Carl Icahn’s latest offer to pay $7.50 for outstanding shares. The company just filed its Schedule 14D-9 Report. The report described a September 7 meeting of the board of directors, which unanimously rejected the offer and voted to recommend that shareholders do the same. The reasons included strings that Icahn attached to the offer, but also that Lionsgate management feels confident about recent momentum it has built with recent releases The Expendables and The Last Exorcism, both of which performed well in late August. The company also cited the surprising resilience of the film Kick-Ass, which has grossed $50 million domestic and $100 million worldwide and which just topped the DVD sales charts. Lionsgate also cited a record 26 Emmy nominations, including wins for Mad Men and Nurse Jackie, as reasons to feel bullish on the TV side. Not in the report was the week long meetings held by Lionsgate brass with directors for The Hunger Games, the first in a series of three Suzanne Collins novels that have the potential to be a game-changer for the indie, much the way that Twilight was for Summit Entertainment.

Icahn recently raised his share offer to its highest, after a starting bid of $6.50, which climbed to $7. The stock closed slightly down, at $7.14 per share.