A clerical error forced paper provider Boise Cascade to temporarily cease trading on its shares yesterday after it issued an erroneous report regarding a preliminary shareholder vote on its merger with OfficeMax.
Nevertheless, Boise Cascade, Boise, ID, said it expected the merger to be completed as scheduled today. The vote was to allow OfficeMax shareholders to state whether they wished to receive cash or Boise Cascade stock as a result of the merger.
The error was due to the company that is managing the stock and cash swap, Wells Fargo Shareowner Services, Boise Cascade said. Initially, the company reported that it received votes from 63 percent of OfficeMax shareholders, and that 97 percent elected to take Boise Cascade stock while 3 percent opted for cash.
After retracting those results, Boise Cascade said it received votes from virtually all OfficeMax shares and that 94 percent selected stocks.
Boise Cascade announced its merger with OfficeMax in July, when it estimated the value of the merger to be $1.15 billion. Since then, an increase in the stock price of Boise Cascade drove up the value of the deal to $1.38 billion.
