They are entitled to $27.25 for each Deb Shops' share, which, atthe time the agreement was announced, represented a premium of 2.1%over the trading price of the company's common stock in July. Withthe close of the sale on Oct. 24, shares of the teen-apparel retailfirm ceased trading on the Nasdaq. Just prior to the delisting, thestock was trading at $27.23 a share.

Vienna, VA-based Proxy Governance Inc., an independent proxyadvisory firm, had advised shareholders to reject the proposedtakeover. "Based on the recent trading history and the availableequity analyst opinion," Proxy Governance said in a July report,"it is not clear that the company's performance justifies such asmall premium." The report also suggested that the retailer's board"should have provided far closer oversight of the (salenegotiation) process."

Under the terms of the agreement, Allen Questrom, a Lee Equitysenior advisor who is credited with the turnaround of JC Penney,will serve as non-executive chair of Deb Shops. According to astatement by the retailer, he will "provide significant strategicdirection and leadership to the company's current senior managementteam."