Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc. · NYSE:BHR
Braemar Hotels & Resorts — Proxy Contest (May 2024)
18 slides from Braemar Hotels & Resorts's proxy contest presentation, May 20, 2024
Slide 1: The Buffoonery of Monty Bennett
THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE:BHR 1 ) MAY 2024 NOMOREMONTY.COM PRESENTED BY BLACKWELLS CAPITAL
Slide 2: Disclaimer
DISC L A IMER 2 The views expressed in this presentation (the “Presentation”) represent the opinions of Blackwells Capital LLC and/or certain of its affiliates (“Blackwells”) and the investment funds it manages that hold shares in Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc . (the “Company”, “Braemar” or “BHR”) .
Slide 3: The Buffoonery of Monty Bennett: Buffoonery Reality
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT In a piece about Mr . Bennett, written by Mr . Bennett , he claims : “As the CEO of Ashford, Bennett embodies a relentless commitment to achieving exceptional results ” Montgomery Bennett took over his daddy's hotel business and here are th
Slide 4: Committed to corporate governance practices
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT “committed to corporate governance practices that promote the long - term interests of our stockholders” Source: Braemar proxy statement, filed on April 25, 2024. Capital IQ. $ 2 . 5 0 $22.50 $ 2 0 . 0 0 $17.50 $ 1 5 . 0 0 $ 1 2 . 5 0 $ 1 0
Slide 5: Honest and ethical conduct, conflicts of interest
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT “honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest” Sources: Braemar proxy statement, filed on April 25, 2024 and 2023 Form 10 - K. The web that has enabled a near 600% increase in fees t
Slide 6: Lifelong advocate of civic engagement
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT “lifelong advocate of civic engagement… [Bennett] takes pride in giving back to the Dallas - Fort Worth community.” Monty “was cast as a face of corporate greed in the COVID - 19 era after applying” for the PPP loans (1) Braemar, Ashford an
Slide 7: Sagacious leadership and visionary claims
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT On websites created by Monty Bennett he claims to have “sagacious leadership” and be a “visionary” It appears Mr. Bennett has a pattern of burning company resources on pet projects Source: https://monty - bennett.jimdosite.com/. 7
Slide 8: The Dallas Express, Mr. Bennett's media outlet
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT The Dallas Express, Mr. Bennett’s media outlet, claims to “ follow ethical standards in order to maintain the integrity of the publication ” Mr. Bennett uses his rag to publish articles smearing Blackwells Why has Braemar failed to disclose
Slide 9: Truth has become a casualty in today's media world
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Mr. Bennett: “truth has become a casualty in today’s media world”, “somewhere journalism lost its way” Somewhere journalism has lost its way, says Mr. Bennett… readers need look no further to see where that somewhere is… Sources: The Dallas
Slide 10: Braemar comically suggests Blackwells does not provide value
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Braemar comically suggests Blackwells does not provide value to shareholders through its engagement Blackwells has unlocked tens of billions of dollars of value at other companies in need of major governance overhauls Mr. Bennett’s track re
Slide 11: BHR stock performance vs S&P 500 by director
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT BHR Stock P e r f o r m a n c e v s S& P 500 since start date B r ae m a r S t o c k P e r f o r m a n c e s i n c e start date Role Name (285.6%) (90.63%) Chairman of the Board Monty Bennett (285.6%) (90.63%) Lead Director Stefani Carter (
Slide 12: Blackwells has nominated four highly-qualified candidates
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Blackwells has nominated four highly - qualified candidates , including Jennifer Hill, the former CFO of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and Betsy McCoy, the General Counsel of The Related Group B la ck w e l l s ’ no m in ee s : x are indep
Slide 13: Blackwells' withhold campaign at AHT
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT B rae m ar : “ B la ck w el l s ’ a tt e m p t e d w i t hhol d pro x y campaign at AHT was a FAILURE ” Following Blackwells' withhold campaign at Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc., both Chairman Monty Bennett and director Kamal Jafarnia were
Slide 14: Petty litigation accusations
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Mr. Bennett and Ashford suggesting anyone has a history of petty litigation is like the ocean calling the sand ‘wet’ Braemar suggests that Mr. Aintabi has a history of petty litigious behavior citing a case from 15 years ago from a dispute
Slide 15: Bennett again suggests Mr. Aintabi is litigious
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT Bennett again suggests that Mr. Aintabi has a history of petty litigious behavior… S ou r c e : E x pe l B l a c k we ll s T w i t te r . (1) Email sent from Mr. Bennett’s account. “You guys may very well be involved in child abuse… What do
Slide 16: Create and protect stockholder value
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT “As always, we will continue to look at ways to fulfill our mission to create and protect stockholder value” - Monty J. Bennett (1) Blackwells submitted a 454 - page nomination notice… only for Braemar to sue to keep our independent directo
Slide 17: Braemar burned shareholder dollars on fake Instagram followers
Bu ff o on e r y R ea li ty THE BUFFOONERY OF MONTY BENNETT [… ] BRAEMAR HAS BURNED SHAREHOLDER DOLLARS TO ACQUIRE FAKE INSTAGRAM FOLLOWERS ON AN ACCOUNT CREATED TO SMEAR A SHAREHOLDER Bef or e : A fte r: Source: Expel Blackwells Instagram and Blackwells’ Press Release as of May 16, 2024. 17
Slide 18: Voting Information
VOTING INFORMATION Braemar's 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held on July 30 , 2024 , and all shareholders of record as of the close of business on May 2 , 2024 are entitled to vote at the meeting Braemar Shareholders – Please vote your proxy today on the WHITE universal proxy card “FOR”