Shareholders Approve J. Crew Sale to TPG, Leonard Green

It’s official.

Shareholders of J. Crew Group have approved the roughly $3 billion sale of the company to TPG Capital and Leonard Green. Roughly 41.1 million holders of J. Crew common stock voted for the deal, while about 13.3 million holders voted against it, a statement said.

The PE firms are paying $43 a share cash for J. Crew, which sells preppy sweaters and pants through 250 retail stores and online. The sale is expected to be completed “on or around” March 7.

On Tuesday, shares of J. Crew rose by 44 cents to $43.56 in afternoon trading.

The sale comes after a flood of shareholder lawsuits protested the transaction, claiming that CEO Millard Drexler had breached his fiduciary duty to investors, my coworkers at Thomson Reuters reported.

Drexler was in talks with the PE firms for nearly seven weeks without telling J. Crew’s board. ISS, the influential proxy firm, also was against the sale, citing “serious issues in the sales process.”