Activist investors have been operating in the marketplace for some time, but recently, the combination of a favourable regulatory environment and abundance of funds to invest, means that activists are here to stay.
Activists are better prepared than ever before, they spend considerable time undertaking sophisticated analysis to finesse their demands thesis and have stepped up their strategy by courting passive shareholders well in advance in order to influence crucial votes in their favour.
Executives and Boards who understand and apply activist techniques are better placed to meet the demands of activists and simultaneously drive shareholder value. This means they may look to understand the motivation of activists, ask some difficult internal questions about company performance and future direction, and then take concrete steps to improve shareholder returns.
This report reveals that these pre-emptive actions can demonstrate that management is listening to shareholders and is taking measures to achieve superior results.