Kohl’s says its advisor Goldman has engaged with over 20 parties (NYSE:KSS)

Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) disclosed that its advisor Goldman Sachs has engaged with a number of private equity, strategics and real-estate focused investors regarding a range of potential strategic alternatives from January through March.

Goldman engaged not only with parties who submitted expressions of interest to Kohl’s, but also made outbound calls, talking with over 20 parties, according to a proxy filing. Some parties have entered into confidentiality agreements with the department store chain and have been invited to submit proposals to Kohl’s.

The disclosure comes as activist Macellum Advisors is engaged in a proxy battle with the retailer and has urged the company to sell itself, especially after receiving interest from private equity firms. The activist firm has said it’s convinced that a majority of the Kohl’s (KSS) board needs to be refreshed after it hastily rejected at least two potential acquirers early last moth.

Kohl’s (KSS) also instituted a poison pill that expires in February 2023 after rejecting the offers from Sycamore Partners and a consortium led by Starboard Value and Acacia Research (NASDAQ:ACTG). NYT’s DealBook also reported last month that PE firm Leonard Green is said interested in bidding for the department store chain. In December, TheDeal.com reported that Oak Street Real Estate is said to have expressed interest in purchasing the department store chain’s real estate.

Kohl’s shares dropped 13% in regular trading as investors appeared to be disappointed by the company’s investor day.