Turmoil on Gaylord Board

Gaylord Entertainment is in a dispute with its largest shareholder, TRT Holdings, over the way Gaylord executives are running the company. TRT, which owns properties including the Omni Hotel chain, yesterday (1/15) sent an open letter to shareholders criticizing Gaylord’s senior management and seeking support to elect four of its own people, including TRT CEO Robert Rowling, to the Gaylord Board of Directors. In the letter, TRT accuses Gaylord of poor financial performance relative to peer group, excessive overhead, corporate waste, and lack of accountability to shareholders.

A statement released by Gaylord defends its management and says that electing TRT execs to its board would be a conflict of interest because of the Omni Hotels. Gaylord counters that TRT is trying to take control of the company without “a full and fair price being paid to all Gaylord shareholders.”