Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE: CCI) (“Crown Castle” or the
“Company”) today sent a letter to shareholders in connection with
its upcoming 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the “2024 Annual
Meeting”) scheduled for May 22, 2024. Shareholders of record as of
the close of business on March 28, 2024 are entitled to vote at the
2024 Annual Meeting.
The full text of the letter follows and can be found at
www.VoteCrownCastle.com, along with Crown Castle’s definitive proxy
statement and other materials regarding the Board of Directors’
recommendations for the 2024 Annual Meeting.
VOTE THE WHITE
PROXY CARD OR VOTING INSTRUCTION FORM TODAY “FOR” ONLY THE
12 CROWN CASTLE HIGHLY QUALIFIED DIRECTOR NOMINEES
Dear Fellow Shareholders,
Crown Castle has a strong, highly qualified Board that is
meaningfully refreshed and has the relevant skills to oversee the
execution of our strategy. At Crown Castle’s 2024 Annual Meeting,
Ted Miller, along with Boots Capital Management, LLC (“Boots
Capital”), is attempting to replace four of the Company’s highly
qualified nominees with his own nominees, whose skillsets and
perspectives are not additive and do not reflect current industry
dynamics and the competitive ecosystem. We urge you to vote
the WHITE proxy card or voting instruction form
today “FOR” ONLY Crown Castle’s 12 highly
qualified director nominees to continue the important progress
underway.
CROWN CASTLE’S DIRECTORS HAVE
DEMONSTRATED THAT THEY ARE EFFECTIVE CHANGE AGENTS WHO ARE
SUCCESSFULLY EXECUTING VALUE-ENHANCING INITIATIVES
The Board is taking decisive actions to build a stronger and
more valuable Crown Castle, including:
- Appointing 25+ year tower industry veteran Steven J.
Moskowitz as President and CEO following a robust search
process.
- Advancing its comprehensive strategic and operating
review of Crown Castle’s fiber and small cell business to
identify the most value-maximizing path forward for
shareholders.
- Strengthening the Board by appointing four new
independent directors over the past year and seven of our
current 11 independent directors since 2020, all of whom bring
valuable experience, skills, and perspectives that drive forward
Crown Castle’s short- and long-term objectives.
CROWN CASTLE’S BOARD HAS PLACED AN
EMPHASIS ON REFRESHMENT TO ENSURE ABALANCE OF
PERSPECTIVES BETWEEN LONGER-TENURED DIRECTORS AND NEWER
DIRECTORS
The Crown Castle Board of Directors takes a thoughtful and
rigorous approach to its refreshment process, focusing on criteria
most additive to the Board – including experience, expertise, and
skillsets – geared toward safeguarding and enhancing shareholder
value. At the same time, we balance our refreshment plans by
allowing our newly appointed directors to leverage the
institutional knowledge of our legacy directors, which we believe
is integral to successfully overseeing the Company.
Since 2020, we have appointed seven of our current 11
independent directors with expertise across telecom, towers, and
fiber industries; real estate and REIT; meaningful experience as
C-Suite executives and directors in highly regulated industries;
and critical perspectives as leading investment professionals. Our
current Board composition reflects an average tenure of 5.7 years,
is 54% diverse, and has an average age of 59 years old.
BOOTS CAPITAL IS SEEKING TO REPLACE AND
ELIMINATE SIGNIFICANT AND RELEVANT EXPERTISE THAT OUR CURRENT
DIRECTORS BRING TO THE BOARDROOM
Boots Capital is seeking to replace four directors who are
integral members of our Board: P. Robert Bartolo (Chair of the
Board since 2022), Ari Fitzgerald, Cindy Christy, and Kevin Kabat.
If successful, Boots Capital’s nominees would eliminate significant
and relevant expertise brought by these current directors.
P. Robert BartoloDeep knowledge of the telecom
industry from a shareholder perspectiveExperience and Expertise
- Provides valuable shareholder perspective as a former Portfolio
Manager and the former Executive Vice President of T. Rowe Price’s
largest mutual fund at the time, the Growth Stock Fund, growing it
from $32B to $60B
- Leading voice in the telecom investment universe, twice being
named by Institutional Investor magazine as the best buy-side
telecommunications analyst
- Critical understanding of Crown Castle and the Company’s
ongoing strategic transformation, as the Board Chair and the Chair
of the Fiber Review Committee
“[Rob’s] investor perspective and his work in the
telecommunications space will further strengthen [the
Cable One] Board’s depth of expertise and diversity of thought.” –
Julie Laulis, President and CEO of Cable One1
Ari FitzgeraldExtensive proficiency in the
wireless regulatory & legal environmentExperience and
Expertise
- Integral understanding of both Crown Castle and the broader
industry, as Leader of Hogan Lovells’ Communications, Internet and
Media practice
- Significant understanding of regulatory issues facing Crown
Castle as a former Deputy Chief of the International Bureau and
Legal Advisor to the Chairman of the Federal Communications
Commission (“FCC”)
- Widely respected industry participant as one of the only three
attorneys to have ever been inducted into the Wireless History
Foundation’s Wireless Hall of Fame
“Ari Fitzgerald is very dialed-in to us as a client as well as
to the wider market and legal landscape. He has an
excellent strategic mind, which we value.” – USA-based
Telecom, Broadcast & Satellite client2
Cindy ChristyKeen insight into evolving
dynamics of the modern wireless industryExperience and
Expertise
- Gained a deep understanding of Crown Castle and the broader
tower and fiber industries over a more than 25-year career as an
executive in the telecommunications and high-technology
sectors
- Provides a wealth of industry knowledge from her role as
Director and Treasurer of CTIA, a trade association representing
the U.S. wireless communications industry
- Recognized by leading market participants as a top executive –
during her tenure as President, she led Asurion to be honored by
AT&T as an outstanding supplier
“Cindy has a talent for acting as a change agent and
guiding large organizations and operations through new
endeavors. With years of experience in telecom…she will
serve as a strong addition to the board…” – Christopher Coughlin,
former Chair of the Dun & Bradstreet Board of Directors3
Kevin KabatSignificant expertise leading and
governing highly regulated public companiesExperience and
Expertise
- Distinguished track record of public company CEO experience
from nearly ten years of service as the former CEO of Fifth Third
Bancorp
- Immense public company governance experience at companies in
highly regulated industries, as the Chair of Unum Group, the Chair
of Nisource, as the former Chair of AltiGlobal, and the former Lead
Independent Director of E*TRADE
- Critical experience during M&A processes – oversaw the
successful spin-off of Fifth Third Bancorp’s processing division
and the sale of E*TRADE to Morgan Stanley
“[Kevin] was absolutely the right guy at the right time – it was
a hectic period that required someone smart, thoughtful,
decisive and who wouldn’t shoot from the hip.” – William
Isaac, Former Chair of the Fifth Third Bancorp Board of
Directors4
BOOTS CAPITAL’S SLATE LACKS ADDITIVE
SKILLS; TED MILLER AND HIS NOMINEES ARE UNPREPARED TO OVERSEE A
PUBLIC COMPANY THROUGH A COMPLEX AND IMPORTANT
JUNCTURE
We believe Mr. Miller’s top priority is to execute a
self-serving agenda, along with his son-in-law and two friends, at
Crown Castle.
The appointment of Mr. Miller to the Board is wholly
inappropriate given his lack of relevant experience since leaving
Crown Castle 22 years ago. Additionally, the appointment of the
Boots Capital nominees would create an exceedingly disproportionate
level of influence relative to Boots Capital’s ownership position
of only 0.18% of Crown Castle stock.
Moreover, Mr. Miller and his nominees do not possess any
experience or skillsets that would be additive to the Board’s slate
of highly qualified director nominees.
Ted Miller
- Retired from Crown Castle over two decades ago and his previous
tenure at the Company concluded unsuccessfully
- TSR during Mr. Miller's tenure as CEO: -41%5
- TSR during Mr. Miller's tenure as Chair: -88%6
- No public company executive or operational roles in over two
decades
- Lacks the experience needed for today’s dynamic operating
environment, in light of changes to industry landscape over the
past two decades
- Over Crown Castle’s mandatory director retirement age of
72
POTENTIAL IMPACT: By replacing P. Robert
Bartolo, potential loss of significant telecom investor
experience
Charles Green
- Retired from Crown Castle over two decades ago
- No background in U.S. corporate governance or board
service
- CFO experience is already present on the Board through Messrs.
Singer and Patel
- Clear affiliation with, and allegiance to, Mr. Miller – current
professional experience includes advising PowerX Technology, of
which Mr. Miller is a significant shareholder
- Over Crown Castle’s mandatory director retirement age of
72
POTENTIAL IMPACT: By replacing Ari Fitzgerald,
potential loss of Board diversity, FCC regulatory and specialized
communications industry legal experience
Tripp Rice
- Clear allegiance to Mr. Miller as his son-in-law
- No background in tower or fiber operations
- No public company board experience
- Professional experience almost solely from working for Mr.
Miller for the last 10 years
- Clear professional affiliation with Mr. Miller from his tenure
at Boots Capital, 4M Management Partners, Visual Intelligence, and
PowerX Technology
POTENTIAL IMPACT: By replacing Cindy Christy,
potential loss of Board diversity and extensive customer knowledge
and expertise on current wireless industry dynamics
David Wheeler
- No background in tower or fiber operations
- No public company board experience
- Financial experience is already present on the Board through 11
out of 13 current Board members
- Clear affiliation with, and allegiance to, Mr. Miller – current
professional experience includes serving as a consultant to Mr.
Miller’s 4M Management Partners
- Within one year of Crown Castle’s mandatory director retirement
age of 72
POTENTIAL IMPACT: By replacing Kevin Kabat,
potential loss of leadership and governance experience in highly
regulated industries
YOUR VOTE MATTERS - PROTECT THE VALUE OF
YOUR INVESTMENT BY VOTING THE WHITE
PROXY CARD OR VOTING INSTRUCTION FORM
Crown Castle’s strong Board nominees are taking decisive actions
to improve the Company’s business and drive value for shareholders,
and we believe that your current Board is best positioned to
strengthen Crown Castle and deliver on our
objectives.
We urge you to use the
enclosed WHITE proxy
card or voting instruction form and vote “FOR” ONLY the 12 nominees
proposed by the Board: P. Robert Bartolo, Cindy
Christy, Ari Q. Fitzgerald, Jason Genrich, Andrea J.
Goldsmith, Tammy K. Jones, Kevin T. Kabat, Anthony
J. Melone, Sunit S. Patel, Bradley E. Singer, Kevin
A. Stephens and Matthew Thornton, III (collectively,
"Company Nominees").
Please note that your WHITE proxy
card or voting instruction form has more names on it than the 12
seats that are up for election, pursuant to the requirement that
our proxy card list Boots Capital’s nominees in addition to
the Company Nominees. Shareholders can vote “FOR” less
than 12 nominees at the 2024 Annual Meeting but cannot
vote “FOR” more than 12 nominees.
If you have already voted using a prior proxy card or voting
instruction form listing 13 Company Nominees, your votes
for all director nominees and other proposals will not be
counted. Accordingly, you are urged to re-vote using the
WHITE proxy card or voting instruction form
listing 12 Company Nominees to ensure that your vote is
counted.
Your vote is extremely important no matter how many
shares you own. Please cast your vote in advance of
the 2024 Annual Meeting (whether or not you plan to attend the
meeting) by marking, signing, dating, and returning the
enclosed WHITE proxy card or voting
instruction form by mail in the postage-paid envelope provided, or
by voting via Internet or telephone following instructions on your
WHITE proxy card or voting instruction form.
You may receive solicitation materials from Mr. Miller,
including an opposition proxy statement and gold proxy
card. The Board does NOT endorse Boots Capital’s
nominees or Boots Capital’s By-Laws Proposal and unanimously
recommends that shareholders discard any proxy materials
from Boots Capital. If you have already
submitted a gold proxy card, you can revoke such proxy and vote for
the Company Nominees and on the other matters to be voted on at the
2024 Annual Meeting in one of the ways outlined above. Only your
latest validly executed proxy card or voting instruction form will
count and you can revoke any proxy at any time prior to the 2024
Annual Meeting as described in the Company’s proxy statement.
Please mark your WHITE proxy card or
voting instruction form carefully and vote "FOR" ONLY the 12
Company Nominees.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
The Crown Castle Board of Directors
If you have any questions or require any assistance with voting
your shares, please call the Company’s proxy solicitor:
INNISFREE M&A
INCORPORATEDat(877) 717-3904
(toll-free from the United
States and Canada)or+1
(412) 232-3651 (from other locations).
Advisors
Morgan Stanley is serving as financial advisor, and Paul,
Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is serving as legal
counsel, to the Company.
About Crown Castle
Crown Castle owns, operates and leases more than 40,000
cell towers and approximately 90,000 route miles of fiber
supporting small cells and fiber solutions across every major U.S.
market. This nationwide portfolio of communications infrastructure
connects cities and communities to essential data, technology and
wireless service – bringing information, ideas and innovations to
the people and businesses that need them. For more information
on Crown Castle, please visit www.crowncastle.com.
CAUTIONARY LANGUAGE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING
STATEMENTS
This press release contains forward-looking statements for
purposes of the safe harbor provisions of The Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that are not historical
facts are hereby identified as forward-looking statements. In
addition, words such as “estimate,” “anticipate,” “project,”
“plan,” “intend,” “believe,” “expect,” “likely,” “predicted,”
“positioned,” “continue,” “target,” “seek,” “focus” and any
variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking
statements include (1) statements and expectations regarding the
process and outcomes of Company’s Fiber Review Committee, including
that it will help enhance and unlock shareholder value, (2) that
the actions set forth in this press release best position the
Company for long term success, including our Board’s regular
evaluation of all paths to enhance shareholder value, (3) that the
Company will benefit from the experience and insights of the
directors and the new CEO, and (4) that the Company will identify
the best path forward to capitalize on significant opportunities
for growth in our industry. Such forward-looking statements should,
therefore, be considered in light of various risks, uncertainties
and assumptions, including prevailing market conditions, risk
factors described in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” of the Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31,
2023 and other factors. Should one or more of these risks or
uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove
incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those expected.
Unless legally required, the Company undertakes no obligation to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Our filings with the SEC are available through
the SEC website at www.sec.gov or through our
investor relations website at investor.crowncastle.com. We use
our investor relations website to disclose information about us
that may be deemed to be material. We encourage investors, the
media and others interested in us to visit our investor relations
website from time to time to review up-to-date information or to
sign up for e-mail alerts to be notified when new or updated
information is posted on the site.
Important Shareholder Information
The Company filed a definitive proxy statement and
a WHITE proxy card on April 11, 2024, as
well as a proxy supplement and revised WHITE proxy
card on April 22, 2024, with the SEC in connection with its
solicitation of proxies for its 2024 Annual Meeting. THE COMPANY’S
STOCKHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO READ THE DEFINITIVE PROXY
STATEMENT AND THE PROXY SUPPLEMENT, THE ACCOMPANYING REVISED
WHITE PROXY CARD, AND ANY AMENDMENTS AND
SUPPLEMENTS TO THESE DOCUMENTS WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, AS THEY
CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Stockholders may obtain the proxy
statement and the proxy supplement, any amendments or supplements
to these documents and other documents, as and when they become
available, without charge from the SEC’s website
at www.sec.gov.
Participant Information
The Company, its directors, director nominees, certain of its
officers, and other employees are or will be “participants” (as
defined in Section 14(a) of the U.S. Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended) in the solicitation of proxies from the
Company’s stockholders in connection with the matters to be
considered at the 2024 Annual Meeting. The identity, their direct
or indirect interests (by security holdings or otherwise), and
other information relating to the participants is available in the
Company’s definitive proxy statement on Schedule 14A filed with
the SEC on April 11, 2024, in the section entitled
“Beneficial Ownership of Common Stock” (on page 90) and Appendix C
(on page C-1). To the extent the holdings by the
“participants” in the solicitation reported in the Company’s
definitive proxy statement have changed, such changes have been or
will be reflected on “Statements of Change in Ownership” on Forms
3, 4 or 5 filed with the SEC (where applicable). All these
documents are or will be available free of charge at the SEC’s
website at www.sec.gov.
CONTACTS:Dan Schlanger, CFOKris Hinson, VP
& TreasurerCrown Castle Inc.713-570-3050
MEDIA:Andy Brimmer / Adam
PollackJoele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher212-355-4449
1 Cable One Company Filing – “P. Robert Bartolo Joins the Cable
One Board of Directors” (August 18, 2023)2 Chambers and Partners
Profile – “Ari Q. Fitzgerald” (2023)3 Dun & Bradstreet Company
Filing – “Cindy Christy, President and COO of Asurion Corporation,
Joins Dun & Bradstreet Board of Directors” (August 5, 2015)4
Cincinnati.com “Kabat’s legacy: Bringing Fifth Third ‘back from the
brink’” (July 8, 2015)5 TSR during Mr. Miller’s tenure as CEO (from
Crown Castle Nasdaq IPO on August 18, 1998 to August 20, 2001)6 TSR
during Mr. Miller’s tenure as Chair (from June 1, 1999 to August 2,
2002)
Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI)
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Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI)
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