HireQuest responds to TrueBlue’s rejection of acquisition offer

HireQuest (HQI) issued the following statements in response to the announcement by TrueBlue (TBI) that its Board of Directors has rejected HireQuest’s previously announced proposal to acquire TrueBlue for $7.50 per share. “We are disappointed that despite the positive response to our offer from TrueBlue shareholders, TrueBlue’s Board not only continues to refuse to engage with us to discuss our offer but has even taken steps to deter their shareholders’ ability to weigh in,” said Rick Hermanns, CEO. “The TrueBlue response does not change our belief in the compelling strategic and financial merits of our proposal. We are offering shareholders both a step up in value at closing and the opportunity to participate in the upside of the combined company. For nearly two years, we’ve made repeated efforts to engage with TrueBlue’s Board and management about a strategic combination, however, unfortunately, they’ve shown no willingness to even consider an alternative path – despite overseeing a decline from $2.8 billion in revenue and $134 million in EBITDA in 2016 to $1.6 billion in revenue and negative EBITDA today. The existing TrueBlue strategy, and specifically that of PeopleReady, is no longer competitive in the dynamic economic environment that seems to have become the new norm for the industry. Per Staffing Industry Analysts, the company has underperformed the industry seven out of the last eight years. Conversely, we believe HireQuest’s franchise model and flexible operating platform not only performs throughout economic cycles, but it is uniquely suited to arrest TrueBlue’s downward spiral. We are convinced of the enormous upside to be achieved through a strategic combination and feel compelled to take this directly to TrueBlue’s shareholders. We believe our franchise-based approach to staffing will unlock value currently hidden within the company by converting PeopleReady offices into entrepreneur-driven independently owned businesses. Our $7.50 per share offer represents a compelling premium, and while we believe it’s fair, we remain open to increasing it as well as potentially adding a material cash component if TrueBlue’s leadership chooses to engage in good faith discussions. Our goal has always been to structure a friendly, mutually beneficial transaction, and that has not changed.The ultimate question we are posing to shareholders is: Would you rather invest in a larger, higher-margin combined company at $7.50 per share, or invest at a much lower pre-offer price in an unprofitable company trying to turn itself around from a decade of declines? We have a winning solution here and are excited to bring it to the TrueBlue’s shareholders.: