Barnes & Noble/Burkle Fight Ends Today

The Associated Press: "As proxy fights go, the one between bookseller Barnes & Noble and billionaire investor Ron Burkle has been a page turner, and it could come with a cliff-hanger ending Tuesday. At stake are the future of Barnes & Noble's brick-and-mortar stores and how it plans to grab more of the electronic book market. The company put itself up for sale in a surprise move in August and has increasingly focused on e-books as a path to growth. The contest is too close to call at this point, Morningstar analyst Peter Wahlstrom said. 'It could really come down to an 'every vote counts' situation,' he said." From ER: I've got a hunch Burkle will end up the winner. ISS recommended going with him, and many large insitutional investors are required by their charters to vote as ISS instructs.