(Corrects paragraph 3 to say 88 percent of shares voted, not 41
percent)
May 7 (Reuters) – Timken Co’s shareholders voted on
Tuesday to spin off the company’s steel business.
Investment firm Relational Investors LLC and the California
State Teachers’ Retirement System have been pushing the steel
and ball-bearing maker to split, saying two companies would have
a combined market capitalization larger than the current one.
Of the 88 percent of shares that voted on the proposed
spin-off, about 53 percent were in favor, Timken said in a
statement after its annual shareholder meeting.
Timken reported a sharply lower first-quarter profit on
April 24, citing weak demand from most of its customers,
including the oil and gas industry.
(Reporting by Tej Sapru in Bangalore; Editing by Saumyadeb
Chakrabarty)
