Study of sale

An Orange County investor says he will suggest at the next shareholder meeting of Big O Tires Inc. that the company study whether it should sell itself.

Kenneth Pavia of Balboa Investment Group Inc. L.P. told the federal Securities and Exchange Commission that he will suggest hiring an investment banker to study whether to sell, merge or take the company private at the 1994 shareholders’ meeting.

Pavia disclosed in April that he owns 308,000 Big O shares, or a nearly 10% stake.

A change is needed, he said, because of the “conflicts of the board as it is presently configured, the lack of depth of management and the laggard stock price.” The stock has wavered between $11.125 a share and $17.125 over the last year. It closed Tuesday on the Nasdaq at $14.75, up 87.5 cents a share.

Big O, based in Englewood, Colo., operates or franchises 354 tire and auto-products stores.