SCHEDULE 14-A INFORMATION
Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Filed by the Registrant [x]
Filed by a Party other than the Registrant [ ]
Check the appropriate box:
[x] Preliminary Proxy Statement
[ ] Definitive Proxy Statement
[ ] Definitive Additional Materials
[ ] Soliciting Material Pursuant to ss.240.14a-11(c) or ss.240.14a-12
Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement)
Payment of Filing Fee (Check the appropriate box):
[x] No fee required.
[ ] $125 per Exchange Act Rules 0-11(c)(1)(ii), 14a-6(i)(1), or 14a-6(j)(2).
[ ] $500 per each party to the controversy pursuant to Exchange Act Rule 14a-
6(i)(3).
[ ] Fee computed on table below per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(4)and 0-11.
1) Title of each class of securities to which transaction applies:
.............................................
2) Aggregate number of securities to which transaction applies:
.............................................
3) Per unit price or other underlying value of transaction computed
pursuant to Exchange Act Rule 0-11:
.............................................
4) Proposed maximum aggregate value of transaction:
.............................................
[ ] Check box if any part of the fee is offset as provided by Exchange Act Rule
0-11(a)(2) and identify the filing for which the offsetting fee was paid
previously. Identify the previous filing by registration statement number, or
the Form or Schedule and the date of its filing.
1) Amount Previously Paid:
2) Form, Schedule or Registration Statement No.:
3) Filing Party:
4) Date Filed:
[Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. Logo]
_____ 2008
Dear Fellow Shareholder,
We invite you to attend the Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. Special Meeting of
Shareholders, which will be held at the Wauwatosa Savings Bank Corporate Office,
11200 West Plank Court, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin at 10:00 a.m., Central Time, on
____, __________, 2008.
For this Special Meeting of Shareholders, we are furnishing proxy materials
to our shareholders over the Internet, as permitted by new rules adopted by the
Securities and Exchange Commission. You may read, print and download our Proxy
Statement at www.proxyvote.com. On _______, 2008, we mailed our shareholders a
notice containing instructions on how to access these materials and how to vote
their shares online. The notice provides instructions on how you can request a
paper copy of these materials by mail, by telephone or by e-mail. If you
requested your materials via e-mail, the e-mail contains voting instructions and
links to the materials on the internet.
You may vote your shares by internet, by telephone, by regular mail or in
person at the special meeting. Instructions regarding the various methods of
voting are contained on the notice and on the Proxy Card.
The proxy materials describe the formal business to be transacted at the
special meeting. On behalf of the Board, we request that you vote your shares
now, even if you currently plan to attend the special meeting. This will not
prevent you from voting in person, but will assure that your vote is counted.
Sincerely,
/s/ Douglas S. Gordon
DOUGLAS S. GORDON
Chief Executive Officer
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WAUWATOSA HOLDINGS, INC.
11200 W. Plank Ct.
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin 53226
(414) 761-1000
NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
TO BE HELD ON _____, 2008
To the Shareholders of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.:
The special meeting of shareholders of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. will be
held on _______, ____________, 2008, at 10:00 a.m., Central Time, at the
Wauwatosa Savings Bank Corporate Office, 11200 West Plank Court, Wauwatosa,
Wisconsin for the following purposes:
(1) Approving an amendment to Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.'s
charter to change Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.'s name to
Waterstone Financial, Inc.; and
(2) Transacting such other business as may properly come
before the special meeting or any adjournment thereof.
The board of directors has fixed the close of business on _______, 2008
as the record date for the determination of shareholders entitled to notice of
and to vote at the special meeting and any adjournment thereof. Only
shareholders of record at the close of business on that date will be entitled to
vote at the special meeting. Lamplighter Financial, MHC, our mutual holding
company, owns 73.76% of our outstanding shares and intends to vote its shares in
favor of the proposals described in this proxy statement.
We call your attention to the proxy statement accompanying this notice
for a more complete statement regarding the matters to be acted upon at the
special meeting. Please read it carefully.
By Order of the Board of Directors
/s/ William F. Bruss
William F. Bruss
Senior Vice President and Secretary
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin
_______, 2008
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PROXY STATEMENT
WAUWATOSA HOLDINGS, INC.
11200 W. Plank Ct.
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin 53226
(414) 761-1000
SOLICITATION AND VOTING
This proxy statement and accompanying proxy card are furnished to the
shareholders of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. in connection with the solicitation of
proxies by the Wauwatosa Holdings board of directors for use at the special
meeting of Wauwatosa Holdings shareholders on ________, ________, 2008, and at
any adjournment of the meeting. We are mailing the proxy materials to
shareholders beginning on or about _________, 2008.
Record Date and Meeting Information. The board of directors has fixed the
close of business on ________, 2008 as the record date for the determination of
shareholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the special meeting and any
adjournment thereof. Only holders of record of our common stock, the only class
of voting stock of Wauwatosa Holdings outstanding, on the record date are
entitled to notice of and to vote at the special meeting. Each share of common
stock is entitled to one vote. At the record date, there were 31,250,897 shares
of common stock validly issued and outstanding.
The board of directors of Wauwatosa Holdings knows of no matters to be acted
upon at the special meeting other than as set forth in the notice attached to
this proxy statement. If any other matters properly come before the special
meeting, or any adjournment thereof, it is the intention of the persons named in
the proxy to vote such proxies in accordance with their best judgment on such
matters.
Voting Your Shares. Any shareholder entitled to vote at the special meeting
may vote either in person or by a properly executed proxy. Shares
represented by properly executed proxies received by Wauwatosa Holdings will be
voted at the special meeting, or any adjournment thereof, in accordance with the
terms of such proxies, unless revoked. If no voting instructions are given on a
properly executed proxy, the shares will be voted FOR the charter amendment to
change the name of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. to Waterstone Financial, Inc.
A shareholder may revoke a proxy at any time prior to the time when it is
voted by filing a written notice of revocation with our corporate secretary at
the address set forth above, by delivering a properly executed proxy bearing a
later date or by voting in person at the special meeting. Attendance at the
special meeting will not in itself constitute revocation of a proxy. If you are
a shareholder whose shares are not registered in your name, you will need
appropriate documentation from your record holder in order to vote in person at
the special meeting.
Shares in Employee Plans. Any shareholder who owns shares through an
allocation to that person's account under the Wauwatosa Savings Bank Employee
Stock Ownership Plan (the "ESOP") will receive a separate proxy card to instruct
the ESOP's Trustee how to vote those shares. The ESOP Trustee, Marshall & Ilsley
Trust Company NA, will vote shares allocated to those employees' ESOP accounts
in accordance with the participant's voting instructions on the proxies. The
ESOP administrator may vote, in its discretion, unallocated ESOP shares and any
allocated ESOP shares which are not voted by the individuals to whom they are
allocated. It is expected that those shares will be voted for the proposal.
Shares Held by Charitable Foundation. Under applicable regulations and the
terms of the Plan of Reorganization pursuant to which Wauwatosa Savings Bank
converted into the mutual holding company form, the Waukesha County Community
Foundation, Inc. must vote all shares of Wauwatosa Holdings common stock held by
it in the same ratio as all other shares of Wauwatosa Holdings voted on any
proposal by Wauwatosa Holdings' shareholders. On the record date, the Waukesha
County Community Foundation held ______ shares of Wauwatosa Holdings common
stock.
Quorum and Required Vote. A majority of the votes entitled to be cast by the
shares entitled to vote, represented in person or by proxy, will constitute a
quorum of shareholders at the special meeting. Abstentions and broker non-votes
(i.e., proxies from brokers or nominees indicating that such persons have not
received instructions from the beneficial owners or other persons entitled to
vote shares as to a matter with respect to which the brokers or nominees do not
have discretionary power to vote) will be considered present for purposes of
establishing a quorum. The inspector of election appointed by the board of
directors will count the votes and ballots at the special meeting.
The affirmative vote of a majority of our shares of common stock outstanding
in person or by proxy at the special meeting is required to approve the charter
amendment to change the name of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. to Waterstone
Financial, Inc. An abstention or broker non-vote will have the same effect as a
vote against the charter amendment.
Lamplighter Financial MHC owns approximately 74% of the outstanding shares
of Wauwatosa Holdings common stock as of the record date. Lamplighter Financial
intends to vote all of its shares in favor of the proposal, which means that its
passage is assured.
Expenses and Solicitation. We will pay expenses in connection with the
solicitation of proxies. Proxies will be solicited principally by mail, but may
also be solicited by our directors, officers and other employees in person or by
telephone, facsimile or other means of communication. Those directors, officers
and employees will receive no compensation therefor in addition to their regular
compensation, but may be reimbursed for their related out-of-pocket expenses.
Brokers, dealers, banks, or their nominees, who hold common stock on behalf of
another will be asked to send proxy materials and related documents to the
beneficial owners of such stock, and we will reimburse those persons for their
reasonable expenses.
SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
The table below sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of
Wauwatosa Holdings common stock on the record date by each director, by each
executive officer, by holders of 5% or more of our shares of common stock and by
all of our directors and executive officers as a group. None of the shares
beneficially owned by our directors or officers are pledged as collateral for
loans.
Number of Shares and
Nature of Beneficial Percent
Name of Beneficial Owner Ownership (1)(2) of Class
------------------------ -------------------- --------
Lamplighter Financial, MHC(4)........... 23,050,183 73.76%
Rebecca M. Arndt........................ 18,063 *
Donald P. Bray.......................... 0 *
William F. Bruss........................ 31,359 *
Thomas E. Dalum......................... 48,351 *
Douglas S. Gordon....................... 203,338 *
Michael L. Hansen....................... 185,844 *
Richard C. Larson....................... 45,493 *
Patrick S. Lawton....................... 153,275 *
Stephen J. Schmidt...................... 36,500 *
All directors and executive officers
as a group (9 persons) ((3))........ 1,255,285 4.02%
------------------
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* Less than 1.0%
(1) Unless otherwise noted, the specified persons have sole voting and
dispositive power as to the shares. Number of shares identified as indirect,
beneficial ownership with shared voting and dispositive power: Ms. Arndt -
1,875; Mr. Bruss - 7,859; Mr. Dalum - 13,351; Mr. Gordon - 13,209; Mr.
Hansen - 145,000; Mr. Larson - 7,993; Mr. Lawton - 19,600; group - 751,949.
See also note (3) below.
(2) Includes the following shares subject to options exercisable within 60 days
of the record date: Ms. Arndt - 5,000; Messrs. Bruss, Dalum, Hansen, Larson,
Lawton and Schmidt - 10,000 shares each; Mr. Gordon - 50,000; all directors
and executive officers as a group - 118,000.
(3) The total for the group (but not any individual) includes 533,062
unallocated shares held in the ESOP, as to which voting and dispositive
power is shared. As administrator, Wauwatosa Savings Bank (through its
board) may vote, in its discretion, shares which have not yet been allocated
to participants. Employees may vote the shares allocated to their accounts;
the administrator will vote unvoted shares in its discretion. Allocated
shares are included only if allocated to executive officers, in which case
they are included in those individuals' (and the group's) beneficial
ownership.
(4) The mailing address of Lamplighter Financial, MHC is 11200 W Plank Ct.,
Wauwatosa, WI 53226.
The above beneficial ownership information is based on data furnished
by the specified persons and is determined in accordance with Rule 13d-3 under
the Securities Exchange Act, as required for purposes of this proxy statement.
It is not necessarily to be construed as an admission of beneficial ownership
for other purposes.
PROPOSAL- CHARTER AMENDMENT TO CHANGE THE NAME OF WAUWATOSA HOLDINGS, INC. TO
WATERSTONE FINANCIAL, INC.
General Description of the Amendment
The amendment would change the name of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. to
Waterstone Financial, Inc. The form of amendment of the charter is attached
hereto as Appendix A.
Wauwatosa Holdings Reasons for the Amendment
Wauwatosa Holdings' board of directors has concluded that the name
Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. no longer reflects the institution's geographic market
as its subsidiary bank, Wauwatosa Savings Bank, has expanded its banking
activities beyond Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. During the month of February, 2008,
Wauwatosa Savings Bank invited its customers and members of the community to
take part in helping choose Wauwatosa Savings Bank's new name. Waterstone Bank
SSB was selected and will officially become the name of the bank in May, 2008.
Accordingly, the board of directors has decided to match the holding company's
name with the new name of the bank. The board of directors believes the charter
amendment is in the best interests of the shareholders.
Stock Certificates
If the amendment to change the name of Wauwatosa Holdings is approved
by shareholders, registered shareholders are not required to submit their
current stock certificates to Wauwatosa Holdings' transfer agent, Registrar and
Transfer Company, for new stock certificates. Stock certificates of registered
shareholders will continue to entitle registered shareholders to all of the
rights and privileges as a shareholder and may be freely transferred subject to
any applicable laws or regulations.
Recommendation and Vote Required
The approval of the charter amendment proposal will require the
affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of
Wauwatosa Holdings common stock on the record date in person or by proxy at the
special meeting. An abstention or broker non-vote will have the same effect as a
vote against the charter amendment.
Lamplighter Financial MHC owns approximately 74% of the outstanding
shares of Wauwatosa Holdings common stock as of the record date. Lamplighter
Financial intends to vote all of its shares in favor of the proposal, which
means that its passage is assured.
Wauwatosa Holdings' board of directors unanimously recommends that its
shareholders vote "For" the approval of the charter amendment to change the name
of Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. to Waterstone Financial, Inc.
SHAREHOLDER PROPOSALS AND NOTICES
Shareholder proposals must be received by the Secretary of Wauwatosa
Holdings, William F. Bruss, no later than November 28, 2008 in order to be
considered for inclusion in the 2009 annual meeting proxy materials pursuant to
SEC Rule 14a-8.
Under SEC rules relating to the discretionary voting of proxies at
shareholder meetings, if a proponent of a matter for shareholder consideration
(other than a shareholder proposal) fails to notify Wauwatosa Holdings at least
45 days prior to the month and day of mailing the prior year's proxy statement,
then management proxies are allowed to use their discretionary voting authority
if a proposal is raised at the annual meeting, without any discussion of the
matter in the proxy statement. Therefore, any such matters must be received by
February 8, 2009 in the case of the 2009 annual meeting of shareholders.
Our bylaws provide an advance notice procedure for certain business, or
nominations to the Board of Directors, to be brought before an annual meeting.
For business to be properly brought before an annual meeting by a shareholder,
the shareholder must have given timely notice thereof in writing to our
Secretary. To be timely a shareholder's notice must be delivered to or mailed
and received at our principal executive offices no later than 30 days before the
date of the meeting. A shareholder's notice to the Secretary shall set forth as
to each matter the shareholder proposes to bring before the annual meeting (a) a
brief description of the business desired to be brought before the annual
meeting, (b) the name and address, as they appear on our books, of the
shareholder proposing such business, (c) the class and number of shares of
Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc. which are beneficially owned by the shareholder, and
(d) any material interest of the shareholder in such business. The chairman of
an annual meeting may, if the facts warrant, determine and declare to the
meeting that certain business was not properly brought before the meeting in
accordance with the provisions of our Bylaws, and if he should so determine, he
shall so declare to the meeting and any such business not properly brought
before the meeting shall not be transacted. This provision is not a limitation
on any other applicable laws and regulations.
By Order of the Board of Directors
/s/ William F. Bruss
William F. Bruss
Senior Vice President and Secretary
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Wauwatosa, Wisconsin
________, 2008
We will provide a copy of our Form 10-K (without exhibits) without
charge to any record or beneficial owner of our common stock on the written
request of that person directed to: Richard C. Larson, Chief Financial Officer,
Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc., 11200 W Plank Ct, Wauwatosa, WI 53226. The 10-K
provides a list of exhibits, which will be provided for a reasonable fee to
reflect duplication and mailing costs; exhibits are also available through the
SECs website at www.sec.gov.
APPENDIX A
CHARTER AMENDMENT OF WAUWATOSA HOLDINGS, INC.
Section 1. Corporate Title. The full corporate title of the Mutual
Holding Company subsidiary holding company is Waterstone Financial, Inc.
(the "Company").
REVOCABLE PROXY
WAUWATOSA HOLDINGS, INC.
SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
_______, 2008
The undersigned hereby appoints the official proxy committee consisting of
the Board of Directors with full powers of substitution to act as attorneys and
proxies for the undersigned to vote all shares of common stock of Wauwatosa
Holdings, Inc. ("Company") that the undersigned is entitled to vote at the
Special Meeting of Shareholders ("Special Meeting") to be held at the Wauwatosa
Savings Bank Corporate Office, 11200 West Plank Court, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, at
10:00 a.m., Central Time, on _____, 2008. The official proxy committee is
authorized to cast all votes to which the undersigned is entitled as follows:
FOR AGAINST ABSTAIN
--- ------- -------
1. The approval of an amendment to
Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.'s charter to
change Wauwatosa Holdings, Inc.'s name to
Waterstone Financial, Inc.
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The Board of Directors recommends a vote "FOR" the Proposal.
THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED AS DIRECTED, BUT IF NO INSTRUCTIONS ARE SPECIFIED, THIS
PROXY WILL BE VOTED "FOR" THE PROPOSAL. IF ANY OTHER BUSINESS IS PRESENTED AT
SUCH SPECIAL MEETING, THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED AS DIRECTED BY A MAJORITY OF THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AT THE PRESENT TIME, THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS KNOWS OF NO
OTHER BUSINESS TO BE PRESENTED AT THE SPECIAL MEETING.
THIS PROXY IS SOLICITED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
Should the undersigned be present and elect to vote at the Special Meeting or at
any adjournment thereof and after notification to the Secretary of the Company
at the Special Meeting of the shareholder's decision to terminate this proxy,
then the power of said attorneys and proxies shall be deemed terminated and of
no further force and effect. This proxy may also be revoked by sending written
notice to the Secretary of the Company at the address set forth on the Notice of
Special Meeting of Shareholders, or by the filing of a later proxy prior to a
vote being taken on a particular proposal at the Special Meeting.
The undersigned acknowledges receipt from the Company prior to the execution of
this proxy of notice of the Special Meeting and a proxy statement dated
________, 2008.
Dated: _________________________ [ ] Check Box if You Plan
to Attend Special Meeting
------------------------- -------------------------
PRINT NAME OF SHAREHOLDER PRINT NAME OF SHAREHOLDER
------------------------- ------------------------
SIGNATURE OF SHAREHOLDER SIGNATURE OF SHAREHOLDER
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Please sign exactly as your name appears on this card. When signing as attorney,
executor, administrator, trustee or guardian, please give your full title.
Please complete and date this proxy and return it promptly
in the enclosed postage-prepaid envelope.
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