KBC Asset Management NV, a Brussels-based private investment manager, filed a lawsuit on Dec. 27 against Vulcan Materials Co. for not acting on a hostile takeover bid earlier in the month by rival Martin Marietta Materials Inc. that would have created the world's largest rock and gravel supplier.
"The exchange offer provides significant bird-in-hand value to Vulcan's shareholders in light of Vulcan's poor performance over the recent periods," says KBC's lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Birmingham, Ala. The Belgian firm owns over 44,000 shares of Vulcan, which has lost money three of the last four quarters. Martin Marietta stock, by comparison, recently shot up to $75.86 per share.