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SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION
Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(Amendment No. )
Filed by the Registrant ☒
Filed by a party other than the Registrant ☐
Check the appropriate box:
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☐ |
Preliminary Proxy Statement |
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☐ |
Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2)) |
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☒ |
Definitive Proxy Statement |
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Definitive Additional Materials |
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Soliciting Material Under Rule 14(a)(12) |
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Inuvo, Inc. |
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(Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter) |
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Not Applicable |
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(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant) |
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Payment of Filing Fee (Check the appropriate box): |
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☒ |
No fee required. |
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Fee paid previously with preliminary materials. |
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Fee computed on table in exhibit required by Item 25(b) per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(1) and 0-11. |
NOTICE OF 2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
____________________
TO BE HELD ON June 13 , 2024
Our Board of Directors (the “ Board ”) has called and invites you to attend the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders of Inuvo, Inc. (the “ Company ,” “ Inuvo ,” “ we ,” “ us ” or “ our ”) at theCompany’s offices located at 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 on June 13, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. local time.
At the 2024 annual meeting you will be asked to vote on the following matters:
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the election of two Class I directors (the “ Election of Directors Proposal ”); |
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the ratification of the appointment of EisnerAmper LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm (the “ Accounting Firm Proposal ”); and |
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any other business as may properly come before the meeting. |
The Board has fixed the close of business on April 19, 2024 as the record date for determining the stockholders that are entitled to notice of and to vote at the 2024 annual meeting and any adjournments thereof.
All stockholders are invited to attend the 2024 annual meeting in person. Your vote is important regardless of the number of shares you own. Please vote your shares in person, by proxy over the Internet by following the instructions provided in the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, or, if you request printed copies of the proxy materials by mail, you can also vote by mail, by telephone or by facsimile.
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By Order of the Board of Directors |
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/s/Richard K. Howe |
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Little Rock, Arkansas |
Richard K. Howe |
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April 29, 2024 |
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer |
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the 2024 annual meeting to be held on June 13, 2024 . This proxy statement, along with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as amended, are available free of charge on our website www.inuvo.com .
INUVO, INC.
PROXY STATEMENT
2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This proxy statement contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements are based on our current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties which may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in the statements. The forward-looking statements may include statements regarding actions to be taken in the future. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that affect our business, particularly those set forth in the section on forward-looking statements and in the risk factors in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “ SEC ”) on February 29, 2024 (collectively, the “ 2023 10-K ”).
Stockholders Should Read the Entire Proxy Statement
Carefully Prior to Returning Their Proxies
PROXY STATEMENT
FOR
2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
The accompanying proxy is solicited by the Board of Inuvo, Inc. for use at our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders to be held at the Company’s offices located at 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 on June 13, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. local time or any adjournment or postponement thereof, for the purposes set forth in the accompanying Notice of 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. The date of this proxy statement is April 29, 2024, and this proxy statement and the enclosed proxy are first being mailed or otherwise delivered to our stockholders on or about April 29, 2024.
Soliciting Proxies
This proxy statement and the accompanying proxy card are being mailed to owners of our Common Stock in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Board for the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders. We will pay the entire cost of preparing, assembling, printing, mailing and distributing these proxy materials and soliciting votes. Proxies may be solicited, without extra compensation, by our officers and employees by mail, telephone, fax, personal interviews or other methods of communication. We will request brokers, custodians, nominees and other record holders of Common Stock to forward copies of this proxy statement and other soliciting materials to persons for whom they hold Common Stock and to request authority for the exercise of proxies. In these cases, the Company will, upon the request of the record holders, reimburse these holders for their reasonable expenses.
Electronic access . To access our proxy statement and 2023 10-K electronically, please visit our corporate website at www.inuvo.com . The information which appears on our website is not part of this proxy statement.
Voting securities . Only our stockholders of record as of the close of business on April 19, 2024, the record date for the 2024 annual meeting, will be entitled to vote at the meeting and any adjournment thereof. As of that date, there were 139,880,666 shares of our Common Stock outstanding, all of which are entitled to vote with respect to all matters to be acted upon at the 2024 annual meeting. Each holder of record as of that date is entitled to one vote for each share held.
Quorum . In accordance with our by-laws, the presence, in person or by proxy, of the holders of at least 33 1/3% of the Common Stock issued and outstanding and entitled to vote, regardless of whether the proxy has authority to vote on all matters, constitutes a quorum which is required in order to hold the 2024 annual meeting and conduct business. Presence may be in person or by proxy. You will be considered part of the quorum if you voted on the Internet, by telephone, by facsimile or by properly submitting a proxy card or voting instruction form by mail, or if you are present and vote at the 2024 annual meeting. Votes for and against, abstentions and “broker non-votes,” if any, will each be counted as present for purposes of determining the presence of a quorum.
Broker non-votes . If you are a beneficial owner whose shares are held of record by a broker, bank or other nominee, you should instruct the broker, bank or other nominee how to vote your shares. If you do not provide voting instructions, your shares will not be voted on any proposal that is a “non-routine” matter which the broker, bank or other nominee does not have discretionary authority to vote. This is called a “broker non-vote.” In these cases, the broker, bank or other nominee can register your shares as being present at the 2024 annual meeting for purposes of determining the presence of a quorum, but will not be able to vote on those matters for which specific authorization is required. Your broker, bank or other nominee has discretionary voting authority to vote your shares on Proposal 2 if the broker, bank or other nominee does not receive voting instructions from you because such proposal is considered to be “routine” matters under the rules of the NYSE. Your broker, bank or other nominee, however, does not have discretionary authority to vote on Proposal 1 at the 2024 annual meeting without instructions from you, in which case a broker non-vote will occur and your shares will not be voted on these matters. In any event, it is particularly important that you instruct your broker as to how you wish to vote your shares as it ensures that your shares will be voted in accordance with your instructions.
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Voting of proxies . All valid proxies received prior to the meeting will be exercised. All shares represented by a proxy will be voted, and where a proxy specifies a stockholder’s choice with respect to any matter to be acted upon, the shares will be voted in accordance with that specification. If no choice is indicated on the proxy, the shares will be voted by the individuals named on the proxy card as recommended by the Board.
Revocability of proxies . A stockholder giving a proxy has the power to revoke his or her proxy, at any time prior to the time it is exercised, by delivering to our corporate secretary a written instrument revoking the proxy or a duly executed proxy with a later date, or by attending the meeting and voting in person. If your shares are held in “street name” through a brokerage firm, bank, nominee, fiduciary or other custodian, you must check with your brokerage firm, bank, nominee, fiduciary or other custodian to determine how to revoke your proxy.
Shares held in street name . A stockholder wanting to vote in person at the 2024 annual meeting and holding shares of our Common Stock in street name must obtain a proxy card from his or her broker and bring that proxy card to the 2024 annual meeting, together with a copy of a brokerage statement reflecting such share ownership as of the record date.
Vote required .
Election of Directors Proposal . The nominees receiving the greatest numbers of votes at the meeting, assuming a quorum is present, will be elected as the two Class I directors to serve until their terms expire or until their successors have been duly elected and qualified. Because directors are elected by plurality, abstentions from voting and broker non-votes will be entirely excluded from the vote and will have no effect on its outcome.
Accounting Firm Proposal . The Accounting Firm Proposal requires the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the shares of Common Stock present, in person or represented by proxy, at the 2024 annual meeting and entitled to vote on the Accounting Firm Proposal. Accordingly, abstentions will have the same effect as a vote “AGAINST” the Accounting Firm Proposal, and shares not in attendance at the 2024 annual meeting will have no effect on the outcome of any vote on the Accounting Firm Proposal.
Interests of Directors and Executive Officers . Our directors and executive officers have no substantial interests, directly or indirectly, in the matters set forth in the proposals, except to the extent of their ownership of shares of our Common Stock and any outstanding equity awards or equity awards that may be granted to them under our equity incentive plans in the future.
Board recommendations .
The Board unanimously recommends a vote “FOR” election of the Class I Director Nominees.
The Board unanimously recommends a vote “FOR” the Accounting Firm Proposal.
Attendance at the meeting . You are invited to attend the 2024 annual meeting only if you were an Inuvo stockholder or joint holder as of the close of business on April 19, 2024, the record date, or if you hold a valid proxy for the 2024 annual meeting. In addition, if you are a stockholder of record (owning shares in your own name), your name will be verified against the list of registered stockholders on the record date prior to your being admitted to the 2024 annual meeting. If you are not a stockholder of record but hold shares through a broker or nominee (in street name), you will need to provide proof of beneficial ownership on the record date, such as a recent account statement or a copy of the voting instruction card provided by your broker or nominee. The meeting will begin at 9:00 a.m. local time. Check-in will begin at 8:45 a.m. local time.
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Communications with our Board. You may contact any of our directors by writing to them c/o Inuvo, Inc., 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201. Each communication should specify the applicable director or directors to be contacted as well as the general topic of the communication. We may initially receive and process communications before forwarding them to the applicable director. We generally will not forward to the directors a stockholder communication that is determined to be primarily commercial in nature, that relates to an improper or irrelevant topic, or that requests general information about Inuvo. Concerns about accounting or auditing matters or communications intended for non-management directors should be sent to the attention of the Chairman of the Audit Committee at the address above. Our directors may at any time review a log of all correspondence received by Inuvo that is addressed to the independent members of the Board and request copies of any such correspondence.
Who can help answer your questions? If you have additional questions after reading this proxy statement, you may seek answers to your questions by writing, calling or emailing:
John B. Pisaris, Esq.
General Counsel
Inuvo, Inc.
500 President Clinton Avenue
Suite 300
Little Rock, Arkansas 72201
Telephone: (501) 205-8508
Telecopier: (877) 311-5050
email: john.pisaris@inuvo.com
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PROPOSAL 1 – ELECTION OF DIRECTORS PROPOSAL
ELECTION OF CLASS I DIRECTORS
The Board, upon recommendation by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, has nominated Richard K. Howe and Gordon J. Cameron for election as Class I directors, to hold office until the 2027 annual meeting of stockholders or until their successors have been duly elected and qualified. In the event either of Messrs. Howe or Cameron is unable or unwilling to serve as a director, the individuals named as proxy on the proxy card will vote the shares that he represents for election of such other person or persons as the Board may recommend. The Board has no reason to believe that Messrs. Howe and Cameron will be unable or unwilling to serve.
The following is biographical information on the current members of our Board:
Directors Standing for Election as Class I Directors
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Name |
Age |
Positions |
Director Since |
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Richard K. Howe |
61 |
Executive Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer; Class I Director |
2008 |
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Gordon J. Cameron |
59 |
Class I Director |
2016 |
Richard K. Howe – Mr. Howe has been a member of our Board since November 2008 and has served as Executive Chairman of the Board since March 2012 and as our Chief Executive Officer since December 2012. Previously, he served as our President and Chief Executive Officer from November 2008 until March 2012. Prior to joining Inuvo, Mr. Howe served as Chief Marketing, Strategy and MA Officer at the billion dollar multi-channel marketing services leader Acxiom Corporation (NasdaqGS: ACXM) where, since 2004, he led the company’s transition to online marketing services, the expansion into China and the development of the big data consulting services group. From 2001 to 2004, he served as general manager of Global Marketing Services (GMS) at Fair Isaac Company (NYSE: FICO), a leading provider of analytics products and services where he drove the company’s online initiatives. Between 1999 and 2001, Mr. Howe started, grew and sold private Internet search innovator, ieWild. Mr. Howe has over his career led the acquisition, merger or divestiture of a dozen companies on three continents worth many hundreds of millions of dollars to shareholders. Mr. Howe earned a bachelor’s degree with distinction in engineering from Concordia University, Canada, and he earned his master’s degree in engineering from McGill University, Canada.
Gordon J. Cameron – Mr. Cameron has been a member of our Board since November 2016. He is a business transformation executive with three decades of success in growing businesses while managing risk. Mr. Cameron is currently Chief Consumer Credit Risk Officer at Fifth Third Bank. Prior to Fifth Third, Mr. Cameron was EVP of consumer risk at PNC Financial Services from 2008 until 2019. He was the Chief Credit Officer, Retail and Small Business Lending, at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce from 2005 to 2008. Mr. Cameron was the Chief Scientist Transaction Analytics, Global Account Management Solutions at Fair Isaac Corporation FICO from 2001 to 2005. Prior to his tenure with Fair Isaac Corporation, Mr. Cameron held executive positions at IeWild Inc., HNC Software Inc., Advanta National Bank/Fleet, The Campbell Group LTD and Fidelity Bank N.A. Mr. Cameron received a MBA from Widener University School of Management and a B.S. in Finance from Pennsylvania State University.
OUR BOARD UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” ELECTION OF THE CLASS I DIRECTOR NOMINEES.
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Directors Not Standing For Election
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Name |
Age |
Positions |
Director Since |
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Jonathon Bond |
66 |
Class II Director |
2022 |
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Charles D. Morgan |
81 |
Lead Independent Director; Class III Director |
2009 |
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Kenneth E. Lee |
53 |
Class III Director |
2022 |
Class II Director
Term Expires at the 2025 Annual Meeting
Jonathan Bond – Mr. Bond has been a member of our Board since March 2022. Mr.Bond previously served as the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kirshenbaum Bond Senecal Partners LLC(“ KBP ”), a global advertising and marketing agency. Prior to KBP, Mr.Bond served as the Chief Executive Officer of Big Fuel (now part of Publicis), one ofthe world’s largest social media agencies that serves blue chip clients. He helped establish iballs, one of the firstonline media agencies, which sold to Microsoft in the early 2000s. He also co-founded Media Kitchen and Varickunder the KBP umbrella. From 2015 to December 2016, Mr.Bond was the founder of Tomorro LLC, an innovationconsultancy. From January 2017 to June 2018, Mr.Bond was the Co-Chairman at The Shipyard, a full-serviceadvertising agency focused on data science, which acquired Tomorro LLC. From June 2017 to June 2020, Mr.Bondwas the Chairman and director of SITO Mobile, Ltd. He is currently fractional CMO/partner of Blue Bear Protection,Lacure and Halo Collar and a member of the board of directors of Sonobi, Inc. Mr.Bond has had investments and/orboard roles at White Ops, Compound (formerly known as Metamorphic Ventures), TZP Group, Victors and Spoils(now part of Havas), Simplifi, Appinions, Data Xu, BlackBook magazine and Klout. Mr.Bond received a Bachelorof Arts from Washington University (St. Louis).
Class III Directors
Terms Expire at the 2026 Annual Meeting
Charles D. Morgan – Mr. Morgan has been a member of our Board since June 2009. Since 2008, he has been the Chief Executive Officer of First Orion Corp., a private company that developed and markets PrivacyStar, an application that helps protect the mobile phone users’ privacy. He also serves as a member and is the past Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Hendrix College. Mr. Morgan has extensive experience managing and investing in both private and public companies including Acxiom Corporation (NasdaqGS: ACXM), an information services company he helped grow from an early stage company to $1.4 billion in revenues during his tenure as Chief Executive Officer from 1975 to 2008. Mr. Morgan has served on the board and in various leadership roles with the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) throughout his career, serving in 2001 as chairman of the DMA board. Mr. Morgan was employed by IBM as a systems engineer for six years prior to joining Acxiom, and he holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Arkansas.
Kenneth E. Lee – Mr. Lee has been a member of our Board since March 2022. Mr. Lee is a Senior Vice President at Ingalls Snyder in New York, where he manages and co-manages customized portfolios for private clients, investment partnerships and institutions. Mr. Lee came to Ingalls in 2018 with a group of clients that trace back to Bridgehampton Capital Management LLC, which Mr. Lee founded in 2006, and merged into Tocqueville Asset Management in 2014. Prior to starting his own firm, Mr. Lee joined Salomon Brothers Asset Management (SBAM) in 1998 where he managed over $1 billion in convertible and corporate bonds in a multi-strategy hedge fund setting within SBAM. Prior to SBAM, Mr. Lee worked for Brown Brothers Harriman in sell-side equity research focusing on technology and financial services firms. In addition, he has had multiple leadership roles on non-profit boards and is a member of the board of directors of CCX Network, Inc., a private telecommunications identity startup. Mr. Lee has a B.A. in History from Wesleyan University and an M.B.A. in Finance and Management from the Stern School of Business, New York University.
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PROPOSAL 2 – ACCOUNTING FIRM PROPOSAL
RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF EISNERAMPER LLP
The Audit Committee has appointed EisnerAmper LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm to audit our consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. Representatives of EisnerAmper LLP will be present at the 2024 annual meeting and will have an opportunity to make a statement or to respond to appropriate questions from stockholders. Although stockholder ratification of the appointment of our independent auditor is not required by our by-laws or otherwise, we are submitting the selection of EisnerAmper LLP to our stockholders for ratification to permit stockholders to participate in this important corporate decision. If not ratified, the Audit Committee will reconsider the selection, although the Audit Committee will not be required to select a different independent auditor for our company. Even if the appointment is ratified, the Audit Committee, in its discretion, may direct the appointment of a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during the year if the Audit Committee determines that such a change would be in our best interests.
Fees and Services
The following table shows the fees that were billed by our independent public accounting firms for the audit and other services provided for the years indicated:
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2023 |
2022 |
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Audit Fees |
$ | 347,130 | $ | 372,750 | ||||
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Audit-Related Fees |
- | - | ||||||
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Tax Fees |
- | - | ||||||
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All Other Fees |
- | 4,725 | ||||||
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Total |
$ | 347,130 | $ | 377,475 | ||||
Audit Fees — This category includes the audit of our annual financial statements, review of financial statements included in our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and services that are normally provided by the independent registered public accounting firm in connection with engagements for those fiscal years. This category also includes advice on audit and accounting matters that arose during, or as a result of, the audit or the review of interim financial statements.
Audit-Related Fees — This category consists of assurance and related services by the independent registered public accounting firm that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of our financial statements and are not reported above under “Audit Fees.”
Tax Fees — This category consists of professional services related to tax compliance.
All Other Fees — This category consists of fees for other miscellaneous items.
Our Board has adopted a procedure for pre-approval of all fees charged by our independent registered public accounting firm. Under the procedure, the Audit Committee of the Board approves the engagement letter with respect to audit, tax and review services. Other fees are subject to pre-approval by the Audit Committee of the Board. The audit fees paid to the auditors with respect to 2023 were pre-approved by the Audit Committee of the Board.
OUR BOARD UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” THE RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF EISNERAMPER LLP.
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As of the date hereof, there are no other matters that we intend to present, or have reason to believe others will present, at the 2024 annual meeting. If, however, other matters properly come before the 2024 annual meeting, the accompanying proxy authorizes the persons named as proxy or their substitute to vote on such matters as they determine appropriate.
Under Nevada law there are no dissenter’s rights available to our stockholders in connection with any matter submitted to a vote of our stockholders at the 2024 annual meeting.
We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of honest and ethical conduct in running our business efficiently, serving our stockholders interests and maintaining our integrity in the marketplace. To further this commitment, we have adopted our Code of Conduct and Business Code of Ethics, which applies to all our directors, officers and employees.
To assist in its governance, our Board has formed three standing committees composed entirely of independent directors: Audit, Nominating and Corporate Governance, and Compensation. A discussion of each committee’s function is set forth below. Additionally, we have adopted and published to all employees our Whistleblower Notice establishing procedures by which any employee may bring to the attention of our Audit Committee any disclosure regarding accounting, internal control or other auditing issues affecting our company or any improper activities of any officer or employee. Disclosure may be made anonymously.
Our by-laws, the charters of each Board committee, the independent status of a majority of our Board, our Code of Conduct and Business Code of Ethics and our Whistleblower Notice provide the framework for our corporate governance. Copies of our by-laws, committee charters, Code of Conduct and Business Code of Ethics and Whistleblower Notice may be found on our website at www.inuvo.com . Copies of these materials also are available without charge upon written request to our corporate secretary.
Board of Directors
The Board oversees our business affairs and monitors the performance of management. In accordance with our corporate governance principles, the Board does not involve itself in day-to-day operations. The directors keep themselves informed through discussions with the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer and by reading the reports and other materials that we send them and by participating in Board and committee meetings. Commencing with our 2008 annual meeting, our directors were divided into three classes and designated Class I, Class II and Class III. Directors may be assigned to each class in accordance with a resolution or resolutions adopted by the Board. Directors are elected for a full term of three years. Our directors hold office until their successors have been elected and duly qualified unless the director resigns or by reason of death or other cause is unable to serve in the capacity of director. If any director resigns, dies or is otherwise unable to serve out his or her term, or if the Board increases the number of directors, the Board may fill any vacancy by a vote of a majority of the directors then in office, although less than a quorum exists. A director elected to fill a vacancy shall serve for the unexpired term of his or her predecessor. Vacancies occurring by reason of the removal of directors without cause may only be filled by vote of the stockholders.
A total of five formal meetings of the Board were held during 2023 and the Board took action by unanimous written consent four times. No director attended less than 75% of the aggregate of (i) the total number of meetings of the Board held during the time in which such director was a member of the Board and (ii) the total number of meetings held by all committees of the Board on which such director served during the period such director served as a member of such committee.
There are no family relationships between any of the directors and executive officers.
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We do not have a formal policy regarding director attendance at annual meetings of stockholders. All of our directors are stockholders and are invited to attend our stockholder meetings. Last year, one of our directors attended the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders.
Board Leadership Structure and our Board’s Role in Risk Oversight
Mr. Richard K. Howe serves as both the Executive Chairman of our Board and our Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Charles D. Morgan, an independent director, serves as our Lead Independent Director and he leads executive sessions of the independent directors. Our Board believes our current structure provides independence and oversight, and facilitates the communication between senior management and the full Board regarding risk oversight, which the Board believes strengthens its risk oversight activities. Moreover, the structure allows the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer to better focus on his responsibilities of running the company, enhancing stockholder value and expanding and strengthening our business, while allowing the Lead Independent Director to lead the Board in its fundamental role of providing independent oversight of management.
Risk is inherent with every business, and how well a business manages risk can ultimately determine its success. We face a number of risks, including operational risks associated with our industry, credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, operational risk, strategic risk and reputation risk. Management is responsible for the day-to-day management of the risks we face, while the Board, as a whole and through its committees, has responsibility for the oversight of risk management. In its risk oversight role, the Board has the responsibility to satisfy itself that the risk management processes designed and implemented by management are adequate and functioning as designed. To do this, the Board meets regularly with management, as well as independently, to review Inuvo’s risks. Both our General Counsel and our Chief Financial Officer attend many of the Board meetings and are available to address any questions or concerns raised by any member of the Board on risk management and any other matter. The independent members of the Board work together to provide strong, independent oversight of our management and affairs through the Board’s standing committees and, when necessary, special meetings of independent directors. Our independent directors may meet at any time in their sole discretion without any other directors or representatives of management present. Each independent director has access to the members of our management team or other employees as well as full access to our books and records. We have no policy limiting, and exert no control over, meetings of our independent directors.
Board Committees
The Board has three standing committees: (i) Audit, (ii) Nominating and Corporate Governance and (iii) Compensation. Each committee has a written charter. The charters are available on our website at www.inuvo.com . Except as set forth below, all committee members are independent directors. Information concerning the current membership and function of each committee is as follows:
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Director |
Audit Committee Member |
Nominating and Corporate Governance Member |
Compensation Committee Member |
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Charles D. Morgan |
✓ |
✓ |
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Gordon J. Cameron |
✓(1) |
✓(1) |
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Jonathan Bond |
✓ |
||
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Kenneth E. Lee |
✓(1) |
(1) Denotes Chairperson.
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Audit Committee
The Audit Committee assists the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibility relating to:
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the integrity of our financial statements; |
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our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements; and |
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the qualifications and independence of our independent registered public accountants. |
The Audit Committee is composed of two directors, each of whom have been determined by the Board to be independent as defined by the NYSE American Company Guide. The Board has determined that Mr. Cameron qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. During 2023, the Audit Committee held five meetings.
Report of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors
The primary function of the Audit Committee is to assist the Board in its oversight of our financial reporting processes. Management is responsible for the preparation, presentation and integrity of the financial statements, including establishing accounting and financial reporting principles and designing systems of internal control over financial reporting. Our independent auditors are responsible for expressing an opinion as to the conformity of our consolidated financial statements with generally accepted accounting principles and auditing management’s assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting.
With respect to the year ended December 31, 2023, in addition to its other work, the Audit Committee:
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reviewed and discussed with management and EisnerAmper LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, our audited consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2023 and the year then ended; |
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the Audit Committee obtained from EisnerAmper LLP the written disclosures and the letter required by applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding all relationships between it and the Company that might bear on its independence and the communications, discussed with EisnerAmper LLP any relationships that may impact the firm’s objectivity and independence, and satisfied itself as to the firm’s independence. The Audit Committee also discussed with management and EisnerAmper LLP the quality and adequacy of the Company’s internal controls; and |
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reviewed and discussed with EisnerAmper LLP the matters required to be discussed by the Statement on Auditing Standards No. 1301, as amended, and, with and without management present, discussed and reviewed the results of the independent registered public accounting firm’s examination of the consolidated financial statements. |
The audit committee recommended, based on the review and discussion summarized above, that the Board include the audited consolidated financial statements in the 2023 10-K for filing with the SEC.
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Dated April 29, 2024 |
Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of Inuvo, Inc. |
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/s/ Gordon J. Cameron, Chairman |
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/s/ Charles D. Morgan |
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for:
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● |
recommending the slate of director nominees for election to our Board; |
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identifying and recommending candidates to fill vacancies occurring between annual stockholder meetings; |
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● |
reviewing the composition of Board committees; and |
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● |
monitoring compliance with, reviews and recommends changes to our various corporate governance policies and guidelines. |
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A majority of the persons serving on our Board must be independent. Thus, the committee has considered transactions and relationships between each director or any member of his immediate family and us or our affiliates, including those that would have been reported under “Certain Relationships and Related Transactions” below if there were any such relationships to disclose. The committee also reviewed transactions and relationships between directors or their affiliates and members of our senior management or their affiliates. As a result of this review, the committee affirmatively determined that each of Messrs. Morgan, Cameron, Bond and Lee is independent as defined by the NYSE American Company Guide.
The committee considers all qualified candidates for our Board identified by members of the committee, by other members of the Board, by senior management and by our stockholders. The committee reviews each candidate including each candidate’s independence, skills and expertise based on a variety of factors, including the person’s experience or background in management, finance, regulatory matters and corporate governance. Further, when identifying nominees to serve as director, while we do not have a policy regarding the consideration of diversity in selecting directors, the committee seeks to create a Board that is strong in its collective knowledge and has a diversity of skills and experience with respect to accounting and finance, management and leadership, vision and strategy, business operations, business judgment, industry knowledge and corporate governance. In addition, prior to nominating an existing director for re-election to the Board, the committee will consider and review an existing director’s Board and committee attendance and performance, length of Board service, experience, skills and contributions that the existing director brings to the Board, equity ownership in Inuvo and independence.
The committee follows the same process and uses the same criteria for evaluating candidates proposed by stockholders, members of the Board and members of senior management. Based on its assessment of each candidate, the committee recommends candidates to the Board. However, there is no assurance that there will be any vacancy on the Board at the time of any submission or that the committee will recommend any candidate for the Board.
The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is composed of two directors, each of whom have been determined by the Board to be independent as defined by the NYSE American Company Guide. During 2023, the committee took written action in lieu of a formal meeting one time.
Stockholder Nominations
Stockholders who would like to propose a candidate to serve on our Board may do so by submitting the candidate’s name, resume and biographical information to the attention of our corporate secretary. All proposals for nomination received by the corporate secretary will be presented to the committee for appropriate consideration. It is the policy of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee to consider director candidates recommended by stockholders who appear to be qualified to serve on our Board. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee may choose not to consider an unsolicited recommendation if no vacancy exists on the Board and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee does not perceive a need to increase the size of the Board. In order to avoid the unnecessary use of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s resources, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will consider only those director candidates recommended in accordance with the procedures set forth below. To submit a recommendation of a director candidate to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, a stockholder should submit the following information in writing, addressed to the corporate secretary of Inuvo at our main office:
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● |
the name and address of the person recommended as a director candidate; |
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all information relating to such person that is required to be disclosed in solicitations of proxies for election of directors pursuant to Regulation 14A under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; |
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the written consent of the person being recommended as a director candidate to be named in the proxy statement as a nominee and to serve as a director if elected; |
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as to the person making the recommendation, the name and address, as they appear on our books, of such person, and number of shares of our Common Stock owned by such person; provided, however , that if the person is not a registered holder of our Common Stock, the person should submit his or her name and address along with a current written statement from the record holder of the shares that reflects the recommending person’s beneficial ownership of our Common Stock; and |
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a statement disclosing whether the person making the recommendation is acting with or on behalf of any other person and, if applicable, the identity of such person. |
Director Qualification
The following is a discussion for each director of the specific experience, qualifications, attributes or skills that led the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee to recommend to the Board, and for the Board to conclude, that the individual should be serving as a director of Inuvo.
Class I Directors
Richard K. Howe - Mr. Howe’s track record as a successful high-technology operating and marketing executive in data, analytics and marketing services as a result of building and/or running over a dozen businesses in five countries were factors considered by the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board. Specifically, the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board viewed favorably his position at companies that include Inuvo, Acxiom Corporation, where he served as chief marketing, business strategy and MA officer, Fair Isaac Company, where he served as general manager, and ieWild, Inc., where he was co-founder and chairman and CEO, together with his service as a board member for the non-profit organization Business for Diplomatic Action and his academic achievements at Concordia University and McGill University in making their recommendation.
Gordon J. Cameron - Mr. Cameron’s track record as a senior executive in a variety of business segments and his in excess of three decades of experience in building successful businesses were factors considered by the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board. Specifically, the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board viewed favorably his position as Executive Vice President in Retail Lending at PNC Financial Services, one of the largest diversified financial services institutions in the United States, as well as his positions with companies such as Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Fair Isaac Corporation FICO, IeWild Inc., HNC Software Inc., Advanta National Bank/Fleet, The Campbell Group LTD and Fidelity Bank N.A. together with and his academic achievements at Widener University School of Management and Pennsylvania State University in making their recommendation.
Class II Director
Jonathan Bond - Mr.Bond’s successful track record as an executive in the marketing services industry and his deep industry experience were factors considered by the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board. Specifically, the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board viewed favorably his position at companies such as Kirshenbaum Bond Senecal Partners LLC(“ KBP ”), Big Fuel (now part of Publicis), iballs, Media Kitchen and Varickunder the KBP umbrella, Tomorro LLC, SITO Mobile, Ltd, Blue Bear Protection,Lacure and Halo Collar, where he was either a founder or high-level executive at each, his service on the board of directors of Sonobi, Inc. and Kubient, his investment background, and his academic achievement at Washington University (St. Louis) in making their recommendation.
Class III Directors
Charles D. Morgan - Mr. Morgan’s successful track record as a high-technology executive in data, analytics, outsourcing and marketing services with a network of relationships worldwide as a result of building a billion dollar annual revenue enterprise as chairman and chief executive officer were factors considered by the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board. Specifically, the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board viewed favorably his experience at companies such as Acxiom Corporation as Chairman and CEO and IBM as a systems engineer; his role as an equity owner of Bridgehampton Capital Management LLC and a significant investor in its funds; his service as Chairman of the Advisory Board and co-manager of investments for Bridgehampton Capital Management LLC; his leadership on the Board and in various leadership roles with the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) including his service as chairman of the DMA in 2001; his service as a member and past chairman of the board of trustees of Hendrix College; and his academic achievements at the University of Arkansas in making their recommendation.
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Kenneth E. Lee - Mr. Lee’s successful track record in the financial advisory industry was a factor considered by the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board. Specifically, the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Board viewed favorably his financial experience and sophistication achieved at Ingalls Snyder in New York, Bridgehampton Capital Management LLC, Tocqueville Asset Management, Salomon Brothers Asset Management (SBAM), and Brown Brothers Harriman, where he served in leadership roles and was entrusted with management over large amounts of funds, his multiple leadership roles on non-profit boards, and his academic achievements at Wesleyan University and the Stern School of Business, New York University in making their recommendation.
In addition to the each of the individual skills and background described above, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and Board also concluded that each of these individuals will continue to provide knowledgeable advice to our other directors and to senior management on numerous issues facing our company and on the development and execution of our strategy.
Compensation Committee
The Compensation Committee is charged with overseeing our compensation programs and practices, including our executive compensation plans and incentive compensation plans. The Chief Executive Officer provides input to the committee with respect to the individual performance and compensation recommendations for the other executive officers. The committee’s charter authorizes the committee to retain an independent consultant and from time to time has done so. The committee did not retain a consultant in 2023. The committee also prepares and supervises the Board’s annual review of director independence and the Board’s annual self-evaluation. For more information regarding the Compensation Committee’s compensation philosophy, please see “ Executive Compensation ” which appears later in this proxy statement.
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“ Dodd-Frank ”) requires public companies to provide stockholders with an advisory vote on compensation of the most highly compensated executives, which are sometimes referred to as “say-on-pay” as well as an advisory vote on how often the company will present say-on-pay votes to its stockholders. At our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders held on June 15, 2023, our stockholders approved a non-binding proposal that the frequency of an advisory vote on our executive compensation would be held every three years. At our 2022 annual meeting of stockholders held on June 16, 2022, our stockholders approved a non-binding resolution approving our executive compensation as described in that proxy statement. As such, this proxy statement does not contain a non-binding say-on-pay proposal for the approval of our current executive compensation structure, but we will seek such approval at our 2025 annual meeting of stockholders.
The Compensation Committee took written action in lieu of a meeting four times during 2023.
Compensation of Directors
During 2023, at the recommendation of our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, each independent member of our Board received a combination of a cash retainer and restricted stock units.
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The following table provides information concerning the compensation paid to our independent directors for their services as members of our Board for 2023. The information in the following table excludes any reimbursement of out-of-pocket travel and lodging expenses which we may have paid.
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Director Compensation |
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Name |
Fees earned or paid in cash ($) |
Stock awards ($) |
Option awards ($) |
Non-equity incentive plan compensation ($) |
Nonqualified deferred compensation earnings ($) |
All other compensation ($) |
Total ($) |
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Charles D. Morgan |
30,000 | 8,100 | — | — | — | — | 38,100 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Gordon J. Cameron |
30,000 | 8,100 | — | — | — | — | 38,100 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Jonathan Bond |
30,000 | 8,100 | — | — | — | 38,100 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kenneth E. Lee |
30,000 | 8,100 | — | — | — | — | 38,100 | |||||||||||||||||||||
2024 Director Compensation Policy
In December 2020, our Board modified independent director compensation so that independent directors are provided an annual restricted stock unit grant of 30,000 restricted stock units on January 1 of each year vesting on the first anniversary of each grant and an annual retainer of $30,000, payable quarterly.
Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports
Based solely upon a review of Forms 3 and 4 and amendments thereto furnished to us under Rule 16a-3(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the year ended December 31, 2023 and Forms 5 and amendments thereto furnished to us with respect to the year ended December 31, 2023, as well as any written representation from a reporting person that no Form 5 is required, we are not aware that any officer, director or 10% or greater stockholder failed to file on a timely basis, as disclosed in the aforementioned Forms, reports required by Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the year ended December 31, 2023.
Hedging Policy
In general, we discourage hedging and pledging transactions. The committee has a policy prohibiting hedging and pledging activity in our equity securities except where the activity is precleared by our general counsel in limited circumstances. The policy applies to our directors, executive officers, other members of our executive leadership team and other officers subject to Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act. The hedging and pledging prohibitions apply with respect to any shares of our equity securities owned by the covered persons, directly or indirectly, whether granted by us as compensation or otherwise acquired and held. Prohibited hedging activity includes purchasing financial instruments (including zero-cost collars and forward contracts establishing short positions in our securities) or otherwise engaging in transactions that are designed to, or have the effect of, hedging or offsetting any decrease in the market value of our securities. Hedging activity may only occur if approved by our general counsel in advance. Our equity securities may not be pledged as collateral for a loan or held in a margin account, except with respect to pledging activity approved by our general counsel in advance where securities are pledged as collateral for a loan and the covered person clearly demonstrates the financial capacity to repay the loan without resort to the pledged securities.
Executive Officers
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Name |
Positions |
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Richard K. Howe |
Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer |
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Barry Lowenthal |
President |
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Wallace D. Ruiz |
Chief Financial Officer, Secretary |
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John B. Pisaris, Esq. |
General Counsel |
Executive officers of our company are appointed by the Board and serve at the pleasure of the Board.
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Richard K. Howe . For information regarding Mr. Howe, please see “ Board of Directors ” which appears earlier in this proxy statement.
Barry Lowenthal . Mr. Lowenthal, 58, has served as our President since May 2023. From February 2006 to February 2022, has served as CEO of Media Kitchen, a media planning and buying agency owned by Stagwell Group. Prior to joining Media Kitchen, Mr. Lowenthal was the media director at Bartle Bogle Hegarty, a full-service advertising agency providing creative and media services from 2001 to 2006.Mr. Lowenthal has been working in the field of media planning and buying since 1988, shortly after he graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of General Studies degree in 1987. In 1994 Lowenthal received a Master of Business Administration from the City University of New York, Baruch College.
Wallace D. Ruiz . Mr. Ruiz, 72, has served as our Chief Financial Officer since June 2010. From 2005 until April 2009, Mr. Ruiz was Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of SRI Surgical Express, Inc. (Nasdaq: STRC), a Tampa, Florida provider of outsourced sterilization and supply chain management services to healthcare providers that was acquired by Synergy Health plc. From 1995 until 2004, he was Chief Financial Officer of Novadigm, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVDM), a developer and worldwide marketer of enterprise infrastructure software that was acquired by Hewlett-Packard Company. Since March 2018, he has been a member of the board of directors of Recruiter.com Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: RCRT). Mr. Ruiz received a B.S. in Computer Science from St. John’s University and a M.B.A. in Accounting and Finance from Columbia University. Mr. Ruiz is a Certified Public Accountant.
John B. Pisaris . Mr. Pisaris, 58, has served as our General Counsel since March 2012, following our acquisition of Vertro, Inc. He served as general counsel of Vertro, Inc. from October 2004 until March 2012. From February 2004 to September 2004, Mr. Pisaris served as vice president of legal of Vertro, Inc. and prior to that was a partner at Porter, Wright, Morris Arthur LLP, a law firm, from January 2002 to January 2004.
Compensation Philosophy
The fundamental objectives of our executive compensation program are to attract and retain highly qualified executive officers, motivate these executive officers to materially contribute to our long-term business success, and align the interests of our executive officers and stockholders by rewarding our executives for individual and corporate performance based on targets established by the Compensation Committee.
We believe that achievement of these compensation program objectives enhances long-term stockholder value. When designing compensation packages to reflect these objectives, the Compensation Committee has adopted the following four principles as a guide:
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Alignment with stockholder interests: Compensation should be tied, in part, to our stock performance through the granting of equity awards to align the interests of executive officers with those of our stockholders; |
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Recognition for business performance: Compensation should correlate in large part with our overall financial performance; |
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Accountability for individual performance: Compensation should partially depend on the individual executive’s performance, in order to motivate and acknowledge the key contributors to our success; and |
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Competition: Compensation should generally reflect the competitive marketplace and be consistent with that of other well-managed companies in our peer group. In implementing this compensation philosophy, the Compensation Committee takes into account the compensation amounts from the previous years for each of the named executive officers, and internal compensation equity between the named executive officers and other employees. |
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2023 Compensation Determination Process
In 2023, the compensation program for our executive officers consisted of the following components:
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base salary; |
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discretionary bonuses; |
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plan awards; and |
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other fringe benefits and perquisites. |
The Compensation Committee believes that our executive compensation package consists of elements of compensation that are typically used to incentivize and reward executive management at other companies of our size, in our geographic area or in our industry. Each of these components is designed to meet the program’s objectives of providing a combination of fixed and variable, performance-based compensation linked to individual and corporate performance. In the course of setting the initial compensation level for new hires or adjusting the compensation of existing employees, the Compensation Committee considered the advice and input of our management. Our Chief Executive Officer typically makes recommendations to the Compensation Committee for any proposed changes in salary, as well as performance-based awards and equity award grants, for the other named executive officers. The Compensation Committee decides any salary change, as well as performance-based awards and equity award grants, for the Chief Executive Officer.
Base Salary
Base salary is an important component of executive compensation because it provides executives with an assured-level of income, assists us in attracting executives and recognizes different levels of responsibility and authority among executives. The determination of base salaries is based upon the executive’s qualifications and experience, scope of responsibility and potential to achieve the goals and objectives established for the executive. Additionally, contractual provisions in executive employment agreements, past performance, internal pay equity and comparison to competitive salary practices are also considered.
In general, the Compensation Committee considers two types of potential base salary increases including “merit increases” based upon the executives’ individual performance and/or “market adjustments” based upon the peer group salary range for similar executives.
Discretionary Bonus Awards
From time to time, we utilize discretionary signing, promotion, retention or other bonus awards as compensation tools that provide incentives for executives to accept employment offers, to reward outstanding performance by executives and to retain key executives. We believe that these bonus awards are consistent with our overall executive compensation philosophy to achieve our recruiting and retention objectives as well as to allow discretion to address the needs of our businesses, which operate in a constantly evolving and highly competitive environment. Bonus recommendations are not determined on a formulaic basis, and no particular weight is assigned to any of the factors considered in determining discretionary bonuses.
In April 2024, the Compensation Committee set the value of discretionary bonuses to be paid in our common stock with an equivalent value of $312,813 to Mr.Howe, $95,878 to Mr. Ruiz and $81,981 to Mr. Lowenthal, for retention and as a reward for performance. As of the date of this Proxy Statement the bonuses have been accrued but have not been paid in stock.
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Plan Awards
The objective of our long-term incentive program is to provide a long-term retention incentive for the named executive officers and others and to align their interests directly with those of our stockholders by way of stock ownership. Under our 2017 Plan, the Board or the Compensation Committee has the discretion to determine whether equity awards will be granted to named executive officers and if so, the number of shares subject to each award. The 2017 Plan allows the Board or the Compensation Committee to grant options and restricted stock and other stock-based awards with respect to the amount authorized, valued in whole or in part by reference to the fair market value of the stock. In most instances, these long-term grants vest over a multi-year basis.
The Board or the Compensation Committee determines the recipients of long-term incentive awards based upon such factors as performance, the length of continuous employment, managerial level, any prior awards, and recruiting and retention demands, expectations and needs. All our employees are eligible for awards. The Board or the Compensation Committee grants such awards by formal action, which awards are not final until an award agreement is delivered by us and executed by both the Company and the employee. There is no set schedule for the Board or the Compensation Committee to consider and grant awards. The Board and the Compensation Committee have the discretion to make grants whenever it deems it appropriate in our best interests. The Compensation Committee has discretion to grant equity awards at any time.
We do not have any program, plan or practice in place to time option or other award grants with the release of material, non-public information and does not release such information for the purpose of affecting the value of executive compensation. The exercise price of stock subject to options awarded under our plans is the fair market value of the stock on the date the grant is approved by the Board or the Compensation Committee. Under the terms of each plan, the fair market value of the stock is the closing sales price of the stock on the date the grant is approved by the Board or the Compensation Committee as reported by the NYSE American.
Other Compensation and Benefits
We have historically provided perquisites and other types of non-cash benefits on a very limited basis in an effort to avoid an entitlement mentality, reinforce a pay-for-performance orientation and minimize expense. Such benefits, when provided, can include additional health care benefits and additional life insurance.
Retirement and Other Post-Termination Benefits
Other than our 401(k) plan, employment agreements with our named executive officers and certain other employment agreements which provide for severance for termination without cause, we have not entered into any employment agreements that provide for a continuation of post-employment benefits. Our benefits plans are generally the same for all employees, and so as of the date of this proxy statement, the Compensation Committee does not believe that any such plans in their present forms would continue post-employment, except as required by law (including with respect to COBRA), or otherwise set forth in our 2023 10-K. We do not currently maintain any other retirement or post-termination benefits plans.
Change in Control Severance Policy
We do not currently maintain any change in control severance plans or severance policies, except as provided in the executive employment agreements and the 2017 Plan, both of which are discussed in this section. Therefore, none of our named executive officers will receive any cash severance payments in the event we undergo a change in control, unless their employment agreement otherwise provides.
Insurance
All full-time employees, including the named executive officers, are eligible to participate in our standard medical, dental and life insurance plans. The terms of such benefits for the named executive officers are generally the same as those for all other company employees, with the exception of the level of life insurance coverage. We pay approximately 95% of the annual health insurance premium with employees paying the balance through payroll deductions. We pay for up to $1,000,000 of basic life insurance and ADD insurance for our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and President. All other full-time employees can elect basic life insurance and ADD insurance coverage equal to their annual salary, up to $50,000, paid by us.
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401(k)
Our employees can participate in a 401(k) plan, which is a qualified defined contribution retirement plan, sponsored by the company. Participants are provided the opportunity to make salary reduction contributions to the plan on a pre-tax basis. We have the ability to make discretionary matching contributions and discretionary profit sharing contributions to such plan. Our practice has been to match participant’s contributions up to the first four percent of their annual earnings. Our match is fully vested when made.
Other Benefits
We seek to maintain an open and inclusive culture in our facilities and operations among executives and other company employees. Thus, we do not provide executives with separate dining or other facilities, nor do we have programs for providing personal-benefit perquisites to executives, such as defraying the cost of personal entertainment or family travel. Our basic health care and other insurance programs are generally the same for all eligible employees, including the named executive officers.
Summary Compensation Table
The following table summarizes all compensation recorded by us in each of the last two completed fiscal years for the following persons (our “ named executive officers ” or “ NEOs ”):
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all individuals serving as our principal executive officer or acting in a similar capacity during the year ended December 31, 2023; |
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our two most highly compensated executive officers at December 31, 2023 whose annual compensation exceeded $100,000; and |
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up to two additional individuals for whom disclosure would have been made in this table but for the fact that the individual was not serving as an executive officer of our company at December 31, 2023. |
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Name and principal position |
Year |
Salary ($) |
Bonus (1) ($) |
Stock Awards (2) ($) |
Option Awards ($) |
Nonequity incentive plan compen-sation ($) |
Non-qualified deferred compen-sation earnings ($) |
All other compen-sation ($) |
Total ($) |
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Richard K. Howe, |
2023 |
425,000 | 312,813 | 330,000 | — | — | — | 7,822 | 1,075,635 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer |
2022 |
425,000 | 200,000 | 429,110 | — | — | — | 7,822 | 1,061,932 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Barry Lowenthal, |
2023 |
183,333 | 81,981 | 462,500 | — | — | — | 4,500 | 732,314 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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President |
2022 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wallace D. Ruiz, |
2023 |
275,000 | 95,878 | 67,500 | — | — | — | 20,234 | 458,612 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Chief Financial Officer |
2022 |
275,000 | 70,000 | 87,773 | — | — | — | 20,906 | 453,679 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
____________
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(1) |
Amounts for 2023 have been accrued, but have not yet been paid. |
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(2) |
The value attributable to any stock awards is computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. The 2023 awards were valued as of the date of grant when the closing price of each share of our Common Stock was $0.30 for Messrs. Howe and Ruiz and $0.37 for Mr. Lowenthal. The stock awards are time-based RSUs vesting over three years from the grant date. The assumptions made in the valuations of the stock awards are included in Note 11 of the notes to our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023 appearing in our 2023 10-K. |
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Executive Employment Agreements
The employment agreements entered into by Messrs. Howe, Ruiz and Lowenthal, each referred to as an executive, have an initial term of one year, after which each executive’s employment agreement automatically renews for additional one-year periods on the same terms and conditions, unless either party to the agreement exercises the respective termination rights available to such party in the agreement. The employment agreements currently provide for a minimum annual base salary of $425,000 for Mr. Howe, $275,000 for Mr. Ruiz and $300,000 for Mr. Lowenthal, which may be adjusted by the Board of Directors in connection with reviews of the executive’s performance. The employment agreements require our company to compensate the executives and provide them with certain benefits if their employment is terminated. The compensation and benefits the executives are entitled to receive upon termination of employment vary depending on whether their employment is terminated:
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● |
by us for cause (as defined in the employment agreements); |
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● |
by us without cause, or by the executive for good reason (as defined in the employment agreements); |
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● |
due to death or disability; or |
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by the executive without good reason. |
In the event of a termination by our company without cause or a termination by the executive for good reason, the executive would be entitled to receive the following:
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his earned but unpaid basic salary through the termination date, plus, in the cases of Messrs. Howe and Ruiz, a portion of the executive’s bonus based upon the bonus he would have earned in the year in which his employment was terminated, pro-rated for the amount of time employed by us during such year and paid on the original date such bonus would have been payable; |
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an amount payable over the 12-month period following termination equal to one times the sum of his basic salary at the time of termination, plus, in the cases of Messrs. Howe and Ruiz, a termination bonus equal to the bonus paid to the executive during the four fiscal quarters prior to the date of termination (except that if a target bonus has been established for Mr. Howe, Mr. Howe’s termination bonus is equal to his target bonus for the fiscal year in which the termination occurs, increased or decreased pursuant to actual performance versus targeted performance in the then current plan measured as of the end of the calendar month preceding the termination date), or in the event of a change of control (as defined below), the greater of the relevant calculation above or the bonus paid to the executive during the four fiscal quarters prior to the change of control; |
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any other amounts or benefits owing to the executive under our then-applicable employee benefit, long-term incentive, or equity plans and programs, within the terms of such plans; and |
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in the case of Messrs. Howe and Ruiz, benefits (including health, life and disability) as if the executive was still an employee during the 12-month period following termination. |
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Finally, in the case of Messrs. Howe and Ruiz, in the event of a termination without cause by our Company, with good reason by the executive, or following a change of control (as defined in the employment agreements), any equity award held by the executive will immediately and fully vest and become exercisable throughout the full term of such award as if the executive were still employed by us.
In the event of a termination by us with cause, Messrs. Howe, Ruiz and Lowenthal would be entitled to receive the earned but unpaid portion of such executive’s base salary through the date of termination.
In the event of a termination by us of Mr. Ruiz or Mr. Lowenthal upon the death or permanent disability of such executive, the executive would be entitled to receive the earned but unpaid portion of such executive’s base salary through the date of termination, the earned but unpaid portion of any vested incentive compensation under and consistent with plans adopted by us prior to the date of termination, and over the 12 months following the date of termination an amount equal to 20% base salary at the time of termination for each year of employment with us, capped at 100% of the base salary.
In the event of a termination by us of Mr. Howe upon the death or permanent disability of such executive, the executive would be entitled to receive the earned but unpaid portion of such executive’s base salary through the date of termination, any other amounts or benefits owing to the executive under any of our then-applicable employee benefit, long-term incentive or equity plans and programs, and over the 12 months following the date of termination an amount equal to 20% base salary at the time of termination for each year of employment with us, capped at 100% of the base salary.
The executive may terminate employment for any reason (other than good reason) upon giving 30 days’ advance written notice to us. In the event of a termination by Mr. Ruiz or Mr. Lowenthal without good reason, such executive is entitled to receive the earned but unpaid portion of such executive’s base salary through the date of termination and the earned but unpaid portion of any vested incentive compensation under and consistent with our plans adopted by us prior to the date of termination. In the event of a termination by Mr. Howe without good reason, such executive is entitled to receive the earned but unpaid portion of his base salary through the termination date and any other amounts and benefits owing to the executive under our then applicable employee benefit, long term incentive or equity plans and programs.
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Outstanding equity awards at year end
The following table provides information concerning unexercised options, restricted stock units that has not vested and equity incentive plan awards for each named executive officer outstanding as of December 31, 2023.
|
OPTION AWARDS |
STOCK AWARDS |
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|
Name |
Number of securities underlying unexercised options (#) exercisable |
Number of securities underlying unexercised options (#) unexercisable |
Equity incentive plan awards: Number of securities underlying unexercised unearned options (#) |
Option exercise price ($) |
Option expiration date |
Number of shares or units of stock that have not vested (1) (#) |
Market value of shares or units of stock that have not vested ($) |
Equity incentive plan awards: Number of unearned shares, units or other rights that have not vested (2) (#) |
Equity incentive plan awards: Market or payout value of unearned shares, units or other rights that have not vested ($) |
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|
Richard K. Howe |
— | — | — | — | — | 1,833,334 | 788,334 | 250,000 | 107,500 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Barry Lowenthal |
— | — | — | — | — | 1,250,000 | 537,500 | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Wallace D. Ruiz |
— | — | — | — | — | 375,000 | 161,250 | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
____________
(1) For Mr. Howe, 366,667 of the restricted stock units reported in this column vested on February 3, 2024 and 366,667 will vest on February 3, 2025. Of the balance of 1,100,000 restricted stock units reported in this column, thirty-three and one-third percent (33.33%) of the units vested on April 1, 2024 and the remaining sixty-six and two-thirds percent (66.67%) of the restricted stock units will vest in two equal installments on April 1, 2025 and April 1, 2026. For Mr. Lowenthal, thirty-three and one-third percent (33.33%) of the restricted stock units reported in this column will vest on each of May 22, 2024, May 22, 2025 and May 22, 2026. For Mr. Ruiz, 75,000 of the restricted stock units reported in this column vested on February 3, 2024 and 75,000 will vest on February 3, 2025. Of the balance of 225,000 restricted stock units reported in this column, thirty-three and one-third percent (33.33%) of the units vested on April 1, 2024 and the remaining sixty-six and two-thirds percent (66.67%) of the restricted stock units will vest in two equal installments on April 1, 2025 and April 1, 2026
(2) One hundred percent of the restricted stock units reported in this column vested on March 1, 2024 upon the satisfaction of performance conditions.
Our Equity Compensation Plans
Information regarding our 2017 Plan is contained in Note 11 to the notes to our audited consolidated financial statements appearing in our 2023 10-K.
Pay-Versus-Performance
The following table provides information about the relationship between executive compensation actually paid to our NEOs and certain financial performance of the Company. The table below summarizes the Summary Compensation Table (“ SCT ”) total and Compensation Actually Paid (“ CAP ”) to the CEO and the average for the other NEOs for the years ended December 31, 2023, December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, along with the required financial information for each year.
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PAY-VERSUS-PERFORMANCE TABLE
|
Year |
Summary Compensation Table Total for Richard Howe ($) |
Compensation Actually Paid to Richard Howe (1)(2) ($) |
Average Summary Compensation Table Total for Non-CEO Named Executive Officers ($) |
Average Compensation Actually Paid to Non-CEO Named Executive Officers ($) |
Value of Initial Fixed $100 Investment Based on Total Shareholder Return ($) |
Net Income (in thousands) ($) |
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|
2023 |
1,075,635 | 1,431,660 | 595,463 | 791,588 | 94.1 | (10,390 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
|
2022 |
1,061,932 | 548,322 | 439,635 | 325,131 | 48.9 | (13,107 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
|
2021 |
2,762,811 | 1,569,486 | 853,283 | 577,993 | 117.8 | (7,601 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
____________
(1) The following tables set forth the adjustments of the SCT total pay for our CEO, as well as the average for our other NEOs to determine CAP, as computed pursuant to Item 402(v) of Regulations S-K.
|
Adjustments to Determine CAP for our CEO |
2023 |
2022 |
2021 |
|||||||||
|
Summary Compensation Table Total |
$ | 1,075,635 | $ | 1,061,932 | $ | 2,762,811 | ||||||
|
Less: Reported Fair Value of Stock Awards (a) |
(330,000 | ) | (429,110 | ) | (2,085,000 | ) | ||||||
|
Add: Year-end Fair Value of Stock Awards Granted in the Year that Remain Unvested at Year End |
473,000 | 243,650 | 662,500 | |||||||||
|
Add: Fair Value of Stock Awards Granted During the Year that Vested During the Year |
— | — | 201,225 | |||||||||
|
Add: Change in Fair Value of Awards Granted Before the Covered Year that, as of the End of Such Year, Remain Outstanding and Unvested |
205,025 | (154,250 | ) | — | ||||||||
|
Add: Change in Fair Value of Awards Granted Before the Covered Year for which All Applicable Vesting Conditions Were Satisfied at the End of or During Such Year |
8,000 | (173,900 | ) | 27,950 | ||||||||
|
Compensation Actually Paid |
$ | 1,431,660 | $ | 548,322 | $ | 1,569,486 | ||||||
|
(a) Amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair values reported in the “Stock Awards” and “Option Awards” columns in the Summary Compensation Table for the applicable year. |
||||||||||||
|
Adjustments to Determine CAP for non-CEO NEOs |
2023 |
2022 |
2021 |
|||||||||
|
Summary Compensation Table Total |
$ | 595,463 | $ | 439,635 |
$ |
|||||||
|
Less: Reported Fair Value of Stock Awards (a) |
(530,000 | ) | (87,773 | ) | (486,500 | ) | ||||||
|
Add: Year-end Fair Value of Stock Awards Granted in the Year that Remain Unvested at Year End |
634,250 | 49,838 | 154,583 | |||||||||
|
Add: Fair Value of Stock Awards Granted During the Year that Vested During the Year |
— | — | 46,953 | |||||||||
|
Add: Change in Fair Value of Awards Granted Before the Covered Year that, as of the End of Such Year, Remain Outstanding and Unvested |
86,875 | (35,992 | ) | — | ||||||||
|
Add: Change in Fair Value of Awards Granted Before the Covered Year for which All Applicable Vesting Conditions Were Satisfied at the End of or During Such Year |
5,000 | (40,577 | ) | 9,675 | ||||||||
|
Compensation Actually Paid |
$ | 791,588 | $ | 325,131 | $ | 577,933 | ||||||
____________
2) Non-CEO NEOs reflect the Summary Compensation Table total compensation and average Compensation Actually Paid to the following executives by year:
2023: Richard K. Howe, Barry Lowenthal and Wallace D. Ruiz.
2022: Richard K. Howe, Wallace D. Ruiz and John B. Pisaris.
2021: Richard K. Howe, Wallace D. Ruiz and John B. Pisaris.
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Narrative Disclosures
The graphs below provide a description of CAP (as calculated in accordance with the SEC rules) and the following financial performance measures:
|
· |
the Company’s cumulative Total Shareholder Return (assuming a $100 investment made on December 31, 2020); and | |
|
· |
the Company’s Net Income. |
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At April 19, 2024, we had 139,880,666 shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding. The following table sets forth information known to us as of April 19, 2024 relating to the beneficial ownership of shares of our Common Stock by:
|
● |
each person who is known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding Common Stock; |
|
● |
each director and nominee; |
|
● |
each named executive officer; and |
|
● |
all named executive officers and directors as a group. |
Unless otherwise indicated, the address of each beneficial owner in the table set forth below is care of 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201. We believe that all persons, unless otherwise noted, named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of Common Stock shown as being owned by them. Under securities laws, a person is considered to be the beneficial owner of securities owned by him (or certain persons whose ownership is attributed to him) and that can be acquired by him within 60 days from April 19, 2024, including upon the exercise of options, warrants or convertible securities. We determine a beneficial owner’s percentage ownership by assuming that options, warrants or convertible securities that are held by him, but not those held by any other person, and which are exercisable within 60 days of the that date, have been exercised or converted.
|
Name of Beneficial Owner |
No. of Shares Beneficially Owned |
% of Class |
||||||
|
Charles Morgan |
5,608,965 | 4.0 | % | |||||
|
Richard K. Howe |
3,706,504 | 2.6 | % | |||||
|
Barry Lowenthal |
-- |
* |
||||||
|
Wallace D. Ruiz |
824,880 |
* |
||||||
|
Gordon J. Cameron (1) |
325,723 |
* |
||||||
|
Jonathan Bond |
60,000 |
* |
||||||
|
Kenneth E. Lee |
485,000 |
* |
||||||
|
All executive officers and directors as a group (eight persons) |
11,948,204 | 8.5 | % | |||||
|
Robert H. Drysdale (2) |
13,848,627 | 9.9 | % | |||||
____________
|
* |
represents less than 1%. |
|||
|
(1) |
Includes 6,630 shares held by Mr. Cameron’s spouse. |
|||
|
(2) |
Pursuant to the Schedule 13G/A filed with the SEC on February 23, 2024. The principal business address of Mr. Drysdale is 132A Royal Circle, Honolulu, Hawaii 96816. |
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Securities Authorized for Issuance under Equity Compensation Plans
The following table sets forth securities authorized for issuance under any equity compensation plans approved by our stockholders as well as any equity compensation plans not approved by our stockholders as of December 31, 2023.
|
Plan category |
Number of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rights (1) (a) |
Weighted average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights (2) ($) (b) |
Number of securities remaining available for future issuance under equity compensation plans (excluding securities reflected in column (a)) (c) |
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|
Plans approved by our stockholders: |
||||||||||||
|
2017 Equity Compensation Plan |
7,010,016 | $ | 0.72 | 10,905,863 | ||||||||
|
Plans not approved by stockholders: |
— | — | — | |||||||||
|
Total |
7,010,016 | $ | 0.72 | 10,905,863 | ||||||||
____________
|
(1) |
The numbers in this column (a) reflect shares of Common Stock to be issued upon exercise of outstanding stock options and the vesting of outstanding RSUs. |
|
(2) |
The weighted-average exercise prices in this column (b) are based on outstanding options and do not take into account unvested awards of RSUs as these awards do not have an exercise price. |
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
There have been no transactions since January 1, 2023 nor are there any currently proposed transactions in which we were or are to be participant in which any related person had or will have a direct or indirect material interest.
STOCKHOLDER PROPOSALS AND DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2025 ANNUAL MEETING
For a stockholder proposal to be considered for inclusion in our proxy statement for the 2025 annual meeting, the corporate secretary must receive the written proposal at our principal executive offices no later than the deadline stated below. Such proposals must comply with SEC regulations under Rule 14a-8 regarding the inclusion of stockholder proposals in company-sponsored proxy materials. Proposals should be addressed to:
Inuvo, Inc.
Attention: Corporate Secretary
500 President Clinton Avenue
Suite 300
Little Rock, Arkansas 72201
Facsimile: (877) 311-5050
Under Rule 14a-8, to be timely, a stockholder’s notice must be received at our principal executive offices not less than 120 calendar days before the date of our proxy statement release to stockholders in connection with the previous year’s annual meeting. However, if we did not hold an annual meeting in the previous year or if the date of next year’s annual meeting has been changed by more than 30 days from the date of the previous year’s annual meeting, then the deadline is a reasonable time before we begin to print and send our proxy materials. Therefore, stockholder proposals intended to be presented at the 2025 annual meeting must be received by us at our principal executive office no later than 120 days prior to the anniversary date that proxy material for this year’s meeting were sent in order to be eligible for inclusion in our 2025 proxy statement and proxy relating to that meeting, which will be December 30, 2024.
Any shareholder proposal submitted outside the processes of Rule 14a-8 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 for presentation at our 2025 annual meeting will be considered untimely if notice thereof is not received by the Company in writing by 45 days prior to the anniversary of the date that proxy materials are sent to shareholders, which will be March 15, 2025. Upon receipt of any proposal, we will determine whether to include such proposal in accordance with regulations governing the solicitation of proxies.
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In addition to satisfying the requirements of our Bylaws, to comply with the requirements set forth in Rule 14a-19 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, shareholders who intend to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than the Board’s nominees must also provide written notice to the Company (addressed to the attention of the Secretary) that sets forth all of the requirements of Rule 14a-19. Such notice must be received by the Company not less than 60 calendar days before the first anniversary of the date of the proxy statement released to shareholders for the prior year’s annual meeting. For the 2025 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, this means no later than the close of business on February 28, 2025.
You may propose director candidates for consideration by the Board’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Any such recommendations should include the nominee’s name and qualifications for Board membership, information regarding the candidate as would be required to be included in a proxy statement filed pursuant to SEC regulations, and a written indication by the recommended candidate of her or his willingness to serve, and should be directed to the Corporate Secretary of Inuvo at our principal executive offices: Inuvo, Inc., 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 within the time period described above for proposals other than matters brought under SEC Rule 14a-8.
AVAILABILITY OF ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K
As required, we have filed our 2023 10-K with the SEC. Stockholders may obtain, free of charge, a copy of the 2023 10-K by writing to us at 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201, Attention: Corporate Secretary, or from our website, www.inuvo.com .
STOCKHOLDERS SHARING THE SAME LAST NAME AND ADDRESS
The SEC has adopted rules that permit companies and intermediaries such as brokers to satisfy delivery requirements for proxy statements with respect to two or more stockholders sharing the same address by delivering a single proxy statement addressed to those stockholders. This process, which is commonly referred to as “householding,” potentially provides extra convenience for stockholders and cost savings for companies. We and some brokers household proxy materials, delivering a single proxy statement to multiple stockholders sharing an address unless contrary instructions have been received from the affected stockholders. Once you have received notice from your broker or us that they are or we will be householding materials to your address, householding will continue until you are notified otherwise or until you revoke your consent. If, at any time, you no longer wish to participate in householding and would prefer to receive a separate proxy statement, or if you currently receive multiple proxy statements and would prefer to participate in householding, please notify your broker if your shares are held in a brokerage account or us if you hold registered shares. You can notify us by sending a written request to Inuvo, Inc., Attention: Corporate Secretary, 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 or by faxing a communication to: (877) 311-5050.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
This proxy statement refers to certain documents that are not presented herein or delivered herewith. Such documents are available to any person, including any beneficial owner of our shares, to whom this proxy statement is delivered upon oral or written request, without charge. Requests for such documents should be directed to Corporate Secretary, Inuvo, Inc., 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201. Please note that additional information can be obtained from our website at www.inuvo.com , and interested parties may contact us through our website at www.inuvo.com with any questions.
We file annual and special reports and other information with the SEC. Certain of our SEC filings are available over the Internet at the SEC’s web site at http://www.sec.gov.
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INUVO, INC. THIS PROXY IS SOLICITED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS ON JUNE 13, 2024 AT 9:00 A.M. LOCAL TIME |
| |||||||||||
|
CONTROL ID: |
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|
REQUEST ID: |
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|
The undersigned, a stockholder of Inuvo, Inc. (the “Company”), hereby revoking any proxy heretofore given, does hereby appoint Richard K. Howe and Wallace D. Ruiz, and each of them, proxy, with power of substitution, for and in the name of the undersigned to attend the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders of the Company to be held at the Company’s offices located at 500 President Clinton Avenue, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 on June 13, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. local time, or at any adjournment or postponement thereof, and there to vote, as designated below: |
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|
(CONTINUED AND TO BE SIGNED ON REVERSE SIDE.) |
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|
VOTING INSTRUCTIONS |
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|
If you vote by phone, fax or internet, please DO NOT mail your proxy card. |
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|
|
MAIL: |
Please mark, sign, date, and return this Proxy Card promptly using the enclosed envelope. |
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|
|
INTERNET: |
www.colonialstock.com/INUV2024 |
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|
|
PHONE: |
877-285-8605 |
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|
2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF THE STOCKHOLDERS OF INUVO, INC. |
PLEASE COMPLETE, DATE, SIGN AND RETURN PROMPTLY IN THE ENCLOSED ENVELOPE. PLEASE MARK YOUR VOTE IN BLUE OR BLACK INK AS SHOWN HERE: ☒ |
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|
PROXY SOLICITED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS |
||||||||||
|
Proposal 1 |
FOR |
WITHOLD |
||||||||
|
Election of two Class I directors: |
||||||||||
|
Richard K. Howe |
☐ |
☐ |
||||||||
|
Gordon J. Cameron |
☐ |
☐ |
||||||||
|
Proposal 2 |
FOR |
AGAINST |
ABSTAIN |
|||||||
|
The ratification of the appointment of EisnerAmper LLP as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm. |
☐ |
☐ |
☐ |
|||||||
|
MARK “X” HERE IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND THE MEETING: ☐ |
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|
In their discretion, the proxies are authorized to vote upon such other business as may properly come before the 2024 annual meeting, and any adjournment or adjournments thereof. THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE ‘FOR’ THE ELECTION OF THE CLASS I DIRECTOR NOMINEES, ‘FOR’ PROPOSAL 2 THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED AS DIRECTED. IF NO CONTRARY INSTRUCTION IS INDICATED, THE VOTE OF THE UNDERSIGNED WILL BE CAST “FOR” ALL OF THE PROPOSALS. AT THE PRESENT TIME, THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS KNOWS OF NO OTHER BUSINESS TO BE PRESENTED AT THE 2024 ANNUAL MEETING. |
MARK HERE FOR ADDRESS CHANGE ☐New Address (if applicable): _______________________________ IMPORTANT: Please sign exactly as your name or names appear on this Proxy. When shares are held jointly, each holder should sign. When signing as executor, administrator, attorney, trustee or guardian, please give full title as such. If the signer is a corporation, please sign full corporate name by duly authorized officer, giving full title as such. If signer is a partnership, please sign in partnership name by authorized person. Dated: ________________________, 2024 |
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|
(Print Name of Stockholder and/or Joint Tenant) |
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|
(Signature of Stockholder) |
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|
(Second Signature if held jointly) |
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