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The high-stakes conclusion is in sight for AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC) and a drawn-out plan to convert its AMC Preferred Equity units (APE) into common shares (part of an approach to raise new equity), as a two-day hearing in Delaware’s Court of Chancery kicked off Thursday morning to settle a key legal hurdle.
The case hasn’t been without drama over the past few months, though — and so it was that 15 minutes into the proceedings, a fire alarm evacuated the courthouse and suspended the hearing.
With the hearing yet to resume, AMC stock (AMC) was down 4.1%, while the preferred units (APE) were down 0.9%.
The two-day hearing is set to process shareholder objections to a relatively quick settlement reached weeks ago that would allow progress on AMC’s plan (to convert APEs into AMC common stock; execute a reverse stock split; and issue shares to raise new capital).
The only part of the hearing schedule that got under way before the fire alarm, though, was commentary from counsel for the plaintiffs — which noted that AMC “inspires a lot of passion” in investors and acknowledged that whatever the twists and turns of the legal process, many people “have lost a lot of money” along the way.
Much of the two-day schedule is devoted to hearing from objectors in planned 15-minute increments, with only the Court allowed to ask them questions. The hearing is expected to adjourn by 3 p.m. ET Friday, to be followed at some point by a written decision from Vice Chancellor Morgan Zurn.
That decision might be more likely to be in favor of the settlement after the court’s appointed special master evaluated several hundred objections and offered a general recommendation to deny the objections.
