Shareholder Showdown: Ex-CEO Slams TransAct's Strategy Amid Stock Slump

HAMDEN, Conn. – April 23, 2026 – TransAct Technologies (NASDAQ: TACT) is facing a public challenge from a formidable figure in its own history: its former CEO of 27 years, Bart C. Shuldman. In a sharply worded open letter to the Board of Directors and fellow shareholders, Shuldman, who remains a significant shareholder, condemned the company's current strategic direction, linking it to a precipitous decline in shareholder value and a loss of competitive focus.

“This is not the company we built,” Shuldman stated bluntly in his letter, issued three years after his departure in April 2023. He argues that the company has strayed from a successful formula of hardware innovation that once established it as a market leader, now chasing a risky and ill-fated software strategy that has yielded little more than a stock price collapse of more than 50%.

A Founder's Rebuke

Shuldman, who owns approximately 93,500 shares, paints a picture of a company that has lost its momentum. He claims that since his exit, TransAct has failed to introduce meaningful new products, expand into new markets, or secure the kind of large-scale customer wins that once defined its growth. He asserts that the business today appears to be sustained primarily by relationships established before his tenure ended.

The core of Shuldman’s criticism is aimed at the company's pivot towards the food service software market. He argues that TransAct lacks a clear competitive advantage in this crowded space, which is already dominated by “well-established, well-capitalized competitors,” including platforms backed by major investment firms like Battery Ventures and Digi/Jolt. He further warns that the rise of artificial intelligence could lower barriers to entry, making it even harder for a newcomer like TransAct to differentiate itself and justify significant capital investment.

While acknowledging his own role in the company's initial software explorations, Shuldman suggests the landscape has changed dramatically. He believes TransAct's strength remains its hardware, specifically citing the BOHA! T2 terminal as a leading platform. His proposed solution is a strategic realignment: focus on the core competency of hardware and partner with established software providers rather than competing with them directly. This, he argues, would reduce risk and leverage the company’s true competitive edge.

A Company Under Pressure

Shuldman’s criticisms are not without statistical backing. A review of TransAct's financial performance reveals a company facing significant headwinds. After posting a healthy net income of $4.7 million on $72.6 million in sales for the full year 2023—the period just before Shuldman’s departure—the company's fortunes took a sharp turn.

For the full year 2024, net sales plummeted 40% to $43.4 million, and the company swung to a net loss of $9.9 million. While preliminary results for 2025 show a rebound in sales to $51.48 million, the company still posted a net loss of $1.2 million for the year. This financial trajectory lends considerable weight to the former CEO’s claims of lost momentum.

The company's stock performance tells a similar story. Trading recently in the $3.40 range, with a 52-week low of $3.06, the share price validates Shuldman's claim of a decline exceeding 50% from the levels seen around his departure. This sustained downturn reflects a clear loss of investor confidence since early 2023.

Doubling Down on Software

Despite the external criticism and challenging financial results, TransAct's current leadership appears resolute in its software-first strategy. In a March 2026 statement accompanying preliminary annual results, current CEO John Dillon declared, “We believe that software is unequivocally our growth engine going forward.”

The company has been actively promoting its progress in the Food Service Technology (FST) segment, centered on its BOHA! back-of-house platform. Management has highlighted positive metrics, including a 36% year-over-year growth in BOHA! terminal sales in 2025 and a 14% increase in FST recurring revenue for the same period. Recent announcements include customer wins with Jet Food Stores and a Northeast-based convenience store chain, as well as an upgrade agreement with a national chain for 1,400 terminals.

Furthermore, the company recently announced it has secured “all rights to the BOHA! software,” a move that consolidates its control over its primary software asset. This action, along with the hiring of a new Chief Marketing Officer in January 2026 to accelerate platform expansion, suggests that, far from heeding Shuldman’s advice, the company is doubling down on its current path. The strategy appears to be funding this software-driven transformation with the “steady cash flow” from its legacy casino and gaming hardware business.

Governance and Future Direction

Beyond strategy, Shuldman’s letter also raises pointed questions about corporate governance. He suggests the Board of Directors may lack the necessary industry experience and that its composition, partially influenced by a past activist investor, may no longer align with the interests of the broader shareholder base. He urges shareholders to “carefully evaluate whether the current Board composition best serves the Company’s future.” Investors seeking clarity will likely turn to the company’s definitive proxy statement, filed with the SEC on April 13, 2026, for details on the current board members.

Shuldman also alluded to a missed opportunity, referencing a time during his tenure when investment banks were engaged to evaluate strategic alternatives. Their analysis, he claims, indicated that separating the business into two entities could have unlocked a combined value significantly higher than the company’s current share price.

As of this writing, TransAct Technologies has not issued a formal public response to the open letter. The company's silence leaves shareholders and the market to weigh the starkly different narratives: a foundational leader's warning of a company that has lost its way, versus a current management team that insists it is building the engine for future growth. With the company at a strategic crossroads, the pressure is now squarely on the board and its leadership to prove their chosen path can restore the value Shuldman claims has been lost.