Nordic nag

31 May 2017 By Liam Proud Follow @liamwardproud

Cevian has taken a 5 pct stake in the Swedish telecoms-kit maker. Boss Borje Ekholm’s strategy of slimming down and boosting margins is sound, but lacks credibility as he was on the board when things turned sour. It can’t hurt to have a big investor breathing down his neck.

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Activist investor Cevian Capital has bought a 5 percent stake in Swedish telecom-equipment maker Ericsson, a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed on May 30

Ericsson shares have fallen by more than 34 percent over the past two years. Chief Executive Borje Ekholm, who took over in January, unveiled a new strategy in March that involved exploring “strategic opportunities” for the company’s media and cloud infrastructure businesses and doubling the group’s 2016 operating margin beyond 2018, excluding restructuring charges.

Shares in Ericsson were up 4.5 percent to 63.4 Swedish crowns at 0855 BST on May 31.

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