STAAR Surgical board urges shareholders to approve Alcon merger

STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ: STAA) board of directors reiterated its unanimous recommendation for shareholders to vote in favor of the proposed merger with Alcon Inc. (SIX/NYSE: ALC), responding to a report from proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis & Co.

The board disagreed with Glass Lewis's recommendation, stating that Alcon is offering STAAR shareholders $28.00 per share in cash, representing a 59% premium to the 90-day volume-weighted average price. STAAR's stock traded at $18.49 per share before the merger announcement.

The company framed the shareholder vote as a choice between accepting the all-cash offer or potentially allowing Broadwood, a minority shareholder, to gain control without paying a premium to other stockholders. STAAR indicated that rejecting the deal could result in downward pressure on the company's valuation.

STAAR warned that voting against the merger could lead to "lengthy and significant disruption to patients, surgeons, employees, distributors, partners, and stockholders." The company also suggested that Broadwood might dismiss the existing board and management team.

The Lake Forest, California-based company manufactures implantable phakic intraocular lenses for vision correction. STAAR filed its definitive proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 16, 2025, and began distributing it to shareholders the same day.

Shareholders can contact STAAR's proxy solicitor, Innisfree M&A Incorporated, with voting questions. The company has retained Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher as its communications advisor for the transaction.

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