Most of Yahoo!'s shareholders would prefer the search engine provider to sign a deal with Microsoft than attempt to oppose it, it has been suggested.Darren Bagwell, an investment manager at Thrivent Asset Management - which owns 1.5 million Yahoo! shares - stated that he "ran out of patience a long time ago", Bloomberg reports.
He went on to say: "The majority of investors would prefer to see them trying to reach an agreement with Microsoft as opposed to looking for ways to fight [it] off."
According to the Bloomberg report, Yahoo!'s deliberation over the past few weeks concerning how to counter Microsoft's takeover bid is now drawing lawsuits from shareholders, with some investors saying that Yahoo!'s management is more concerned with deterring Microsoft than providing the best return.
Larry Haverty, a manager of the Gabelli Global Multimedia Trust Fund at Gamco Investors - which owns shares in Yahoo! - stated: "If the deal goes south, the stock is going south as well. With Jerry Yang running the company, the value is $20 a share."
In a recent interview with Reuters, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates described his firm's offer of $31 a share for Yahoo! as "generous".
However, earlier this month, chief executive of Yahoo! Jerry Yang sent a letter to the company's shareholders arguing against a takeover. In it he said that such a deal is not in the best interests of investors.
