Shareholder Activism

Refocused Olympus provides a flash of hope

14 January 2019

As the $13 bln Japanese company turns 100, it is inviting pushy investor ValueAct onto the board, slashing costs and zooming in further on endoscopes and other medical kit. Changing the corporate culture has been a slog, though. A weak camera business also blurs the picture.

Activist too quick to take an ax to Dollar Tree

7 January 2019

Pushy investor Starboard wants control of the $23 bln low-price retailer’s board, and could push for a sale of its Family Dollar chain. Dollar Tree has underperformed peers. But Starboard, which only has 2 pct of the stock, may do better holding tight and waiting for a downturn.

Firearms will test the mettle of woke financiers

2 January 2019

Wall Street dealt gunmakers a blow in 2018 for their part in facilitating gun violence. Yet the wounds were glancing. Investors like BlackRock aren’t especially suited to social activism. Banks, though, have a bigger bully pulpit, and 2019 will bring more reasons to use it.

M&A shops try jumping on activism’s new coattails

21 December 2018

Moelis and PJT are the latest to ramp up shareholder advisory efforts. The rising influence of passive funds mixed with deeper-pocketed investors targeting bigger firms means Corporate America needs more help. Offering defensive advice now can bag lucrative fees down the road.

Sony’s turnaround will be an activist casting call

21 December 2018

Boss Kenichiro Yoshida has boosted earnings at the $61 bln movies-to-video-games group. But he needs to shed a loss-making handset unit and spin off the chip business, among other things. The Japanese company's reluctance to act will see hedge funds make a cameo in Sony's remake.

Vincent Bolloré will break up Vivendi

12 December 2018

The 66-year-old tycoon is smarting from a drubbing by Elliott in Italy, and his media group suffers from a huge conglomerate discount. A partial sale of Universal Music may help. But dismantling the whole group would release $10 bln in value, and keep potential activists at bay.

Pernod Ricard served a shot of Diageo by Elliott

12 December 2018

The French booze group lags its rival on some counts, such as operating margins, but has bested it on others, notably share-price performance. Narrowing the gap on profitability, and improving corporate governance, as the activist urges, are worthy and achievable objectives.

Hyundai heir is tightening his grip on the wheel

12 December 2018

A radical shake-up in the upper ranks of the Korean autos conglomerate should help de facto boss Euisun Chung repair multiple dents. Flagging sales and restructuring demands from activist Elliott are top of his to-do list. A firmer hand should drive progress on both.

Telecom Italia stuck in activist feedback loop

11 December 2018

Top investor Vivendi wants to overhaul the Italian telco’s board months after a coup by rival Elliott. Regaining control looks hard and Elliott would remain a thorn in the French group’s side. Unless the two find common ground, a governance discount will weight on TIM shares.

Yelp activist push is worthy of five stars

10 December 2018

The $3 bln online review site has gone through management fumbles, fierce competition and a slumping share price. No wonder investor SQN is calling for fresh thinking. With Google and Facebook fighting bigger battles, Yelp should be doing better at winning over small advertisers.

Elliott’s best bet with Bayer is a breakup

10 December 2018

Paul Singer’s fund has held a stake in the $66 bln German conglomerate for over a year. Litigation fears have pushed the stock down 40 pct in that time. Convincing Bayer to sell its drug and consumer health units could create value, but means getting Singapore’s Temasek onside.

Holding: Supreme Court due for a dose of activism

10 December 2018

Like a dozy board, the U.S. tribunal has left confusing financial-fraud laws largely untouched for years. Yet a case argued last week - and a new justice - offer the chance to set the rules and Wall Street watchdogs straight. Shaking up the status quo would add value in the law.

Clash of activists could become feature in Japan

6 December 2018

Pushy U.S. hedge fund Elliott voted in favor of $5 bln Alps buying the rest of car navigation systems maker Alpine. Feisty Oasis had long been fighting to block the deal. Such rifts are rare, but may rise in a country where consolidation of affiliates is a growing battleground.

Shell’s climate pay gesture lacks thermostat

3 December 2018

Linking executive bonuses to carbon targets, as the $258 billion giant has pledged to do, should focus bosses’ minds. Yet the goals and sums involved are unclear, and the plan only starts in 2020. Investors can do more to hold energy groups’ feet to the fire on emissions.

Elliott’s latest Arconic activism is to save face

29 November 2018

Paul Singer’s hedge fund may revive private-equity interest in bidding for the $10 bln parts maker by ring-fencing its liability for a deadly 2017 London fire. But a sale is unlikely to produce much profit on a three-year investment. Even activists have to cut and run sometimes.

Dan Loeb’s soup victory is best served warm

26 November 2018

His activist fund Third Point is getting two members on Campbell Soup’s board. It’s a bigger win than the single seat cage-rattler Nelson Peltz got at P&G. Still, Loeb has been highly critical of Campbell, and his tactics were more aggressive. He has some buttering up to do.

Investors can do more to rein in UK executive pay

22 November 2018

Shareholders want boards to stop granting bosses more generous pensions than workers, and to claw back awards when things go wrong. That’s a sensible response to an outbreak of investor revolts. To avoid egregious payouts, though, companies also need to put a cap on compensation.

Telecom Italia’s new boss faces old challenges

19 November 2018

Luigi Gubitosi has replaced Amos Genish as head of the Italian telco. With backing from activist investor Elliott, he will try to engineer a complex network breakup and sell assets. But bitter opposition from 24 pct shareholder Vivendi will make the strategy hard to execute.

CEO exit will escalate Telecom Italia brawl

13 November 2018

The board’s decision to sack Amos Genish reflects heightened tensions between activist Elliott and top shareholder Vivendi over the Italian telco’s future. Their next battle will be over the mooted breakup of the group. With competition at home, the timing could hardly be worse.

Elliott’s Athenahealth deal leaves sickly odor

12 November 2018

The activist is helping take private the healthcare firm it started agitating against 18 months ago. But at $5.7 bln the deal is some 16 pct below its May offer – and Elliott is relying on a partner to buy the lion’s share. Such tactics may not play well against future targets.