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This short note provides background and data on the growing role of corporate activists, especially in high-technology industries.
A three party, multiple-issue negotiation exercise dealing with a potential merger between two leading department stores, called for by an activist...
- October 2020 (Revised November 2020)
- Case
Digging for Gold: Paulson & Co.'s Activism in the Gold Sector
By: Suraj Srinivasan and Jonah S. Goldberg
The case describes the efforts of hedge fund Paulson & Co to influence corporate governance and improve performance in the gold industry. In an innovative move, the hedge fund led the creation of the Shareholder Gold Council, a consortium of large investors in gold...
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- November 2019
- Supplement
United Technologies Corp.: Are the Parts Worth More Than the Whole?
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher
After spending more than 50 years creating a diversified industrial conglomerate that Fortune Magazine described as “arguably the most profitable conglomerate in America” in 2014, UTC’s CEO Greg Hayes was under pressure from activist investors (Dan Loeb and Bill...
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Keywords:
Corporate Strategy;
Business Conglomerates;
Financial Management;
Corporate Governance;
Organizational Structure;
Diversification;
Valuation;
Investment Activism;
Financial Strategy;
Investment Funds;
Value Creation;
Aerospace Industry;
Electronics Industry;
Industrial Products Industry;
United States
- November 2019 (Revised April 2021)
- Case
United Technologies: Are the Parts Worth More Than the Whole?
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Daniel Fisher
After spending more than 50 years creating a diversified industrial conglomerate that Fortune magazine described as “arguably the most profitable conglomerate in America” in 2014, UTC’s CEO Greg Hayes was under pressure from activist investors (Dan Loeb and Bill...
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- November 2019
- Article
The Relevance of Broker Networks for Information Diffusion in the Stock Market
By: Marco Di Maggio, Francesco Franzoni, Amir Kermani and Carlo Sommavilla
This paper shows that the network of relationships between brokers and institutional investors shapes information diffusion in the stock market. We exploit trade-level data to show that central brokers gather information by executing informed trades, which is then...
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- October 2019
- Case
A Conversation with Ellen J. Kullman, Chairman & CEO of DuPont, 2009-2015
By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz
Ellen J. Kullman, the retired Chairman and CEO of DuPont, describes how she guided the storied science and technology company through a contentious proxy battle with activist investor Trian Partners, which acquired DuPont shares in 2013 and sought to break up the...
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- October 2018
- Case
The Proxy Fight at ADP
By: Robin Greenwood and E. Scott Mayfield
In July 2017, shares of Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP) surged 12% following a report that the activist investor Bill Ackman had acquired a sizable stake in the company and planned to nominate his own slate of directors at the company’s annual meeting in...
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- March 2018
- Case
Sachem Head's Activism at Autodesk
By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher
In 2015, activist hedge fund Sachem Head Capital, led by founder Scott Ferguson, launched an activist campaign at computer aided design (CAD) software maker Autodesk. The activist campaign, waged mainly in private, was over Autodesk's lackluster financial performance,...
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- January 2018
- Case
Trian Partners' Proxy Contest at Procter & Gamble
By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher
In July 2017, activist hedge fund Trian Partners announced that it was launching a proxy fight at U.S. consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble. P&G would be the largest company ever subjected to a proxy fight, as Trian sought to have its CEO, Nelson Peltz, elected to the...
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- May 2017 (Revised October 2017)
- Teaching Note
eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014, and A Note on Activist Investors and the Tech Sector
By: David B. Yoffie and Eric Baldwin
Teaching note to accompany eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014, HBS Case #717-417; eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014: Interview with John Donahoe, eBay CEO 2008-2015; A Note on Activist Investors and the Tech Section HBS Case #716-462
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- March 2017
- Supplement
eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014: Interview with John Donahoe, eBay CEO 2008-2015
By: David B. Yoffie, Eric Baldwin and Tom Ryder
This video, a supplement to HBS Case No. 717-417, features an interview with former eBay CEO John Donahoe, providing his perspective on eBay's response to activist investor Carl Icahn's attack on eBay, which began in January 2014. After giving some of his own...
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- 2017
- Working Paper
Why and How Investors Use ESG Information: Evidence from a Global Survey
Using survey data from a sample of senior investment professionals from mainstream (i.e., not SRI funds) investment organizations, we provide insights into why and how investors use reported environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. The primary reason...
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Keywords:
Investment Management;
Sustainability;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
Investment Fund;
Investment Strategy;
Corporate Accountability;
Activist Shareholder;
Engagement;
Environment;
Climate Change;
Customers;
Customer Satisfaction;
Employee Engagement;
Global Warming;
Investment;
Decision Making;
Environmental Sustainability;
Performance Expectations
- August 2016 (Revised July 2019)
- Case
Alere
By: Raffaella Sadun, Catherine Slater and Channing Spencer
The Board of Alere, Inc., a leading medical diagnostic firm, is evaluating the offer made by Ron Zwanziger, the firm’s founder and former CEO, to acquire the company and take it private. The offer arrives at the end of a tumultuous year for the company, which saw...
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- August 2016 (Revised May 2017)
- Case
eBay vs. Carl Icahn, 2014
By: David B. Yoffie and Eric Baldwin
This case explores Carl Icahn's attack on eBay, starting in January 2014. The case examines how John Donahoe, CEO of eBay, should respond to Icahn's demand that eBay spin off PayPal and accept Icahn's two nominees to the board of directors.
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- July 2016
- Case
'Golden Leash' Pay for Directors at The Dow Chemical Company
By: Ian Gow, Suraj Srinivasan and Neeraj Goyal
In November 2014, The Dow Chemical Company was faced with the prospect of a proxy battle with prominent hedge fund and activist investor Third Point Management. The activist had criticized Dow’s recent performance and advocated that the company split itself to maximize...
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- 2016
- Working Paper
Shareholder Activism on Sustainability Issues
By: Jody Grewal, George Serafeim and Aaron Yoon
Shareholder activism on sustainability issues has become increasingly prevalent over the years, with the number of proposals filed doubling from 1999 to 2013. We use recent innovations in accounting standard setting to classify 2,665 shareholder proposals that address...
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Keywords:
Sustainability;
Activism;
Activist Investors;
Activist Shareholder;
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Environment;
Corporate Performance;
Corporate Accountability;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Performance;
Environmental Sustainability;
Corporate Governance;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Investment Activism
- June 2016 (Revised May 2017)
- Case
A Note on Activist Investors and the Tech Sector
By: David B. Yoffie and Eric Baldwin
This short note provides background and data on the growing role of corporate activists, especially in high-technology industries.
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- April 2016 (Revised June 2017)
- Teaching Note
Dollar General Bids for Family Dollar
By: Jonas Heese, Paula A. Price and Suraj Srinivasan
In spring 2015, Dollar General CEO Rick Dreiling was looking ahead to retiring at year's end but worried about ensuring continued growth for the company he had built since 2008 into a market leader in the U.S. discount retail world. Dollar General operated over 11,500...
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- March 2016 (Revised February 2019)
- Case
Central European Distribution Corporation: Hostile Takeover, Bankruptcy Makeover
By: Stuart C. Gilson and Sarah L. Abbott
In early 2013, Central European Distribution Corporation (CEDC), a large publicly traded producer and distributer of vodka and spirits in Eastern and Central Europe, has suffered significant declines in its financial performance, is at risk of defaulting on its debt,...
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- January 2016 (Revised January 2019)
- Case
The Allergan Board Under Fire (A)
By: Lynn S. Paine, Suraj Srinivasan, John C. Coates and David Lane
In 2014, the Allergan Inc. board of directors received a surprise takeover offer from Valeant Pharmaceuticals in alliance with hedge fund activist Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management. In the unprecedented arrangement between an acquirer and a hedge fund...
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Keywords:
Allergan, Inc.;
Valeant;
Ackman;
Pershing Square;
Tender Offer;
Activist Investors;
Business Models;
R＆D;
Board Of Directors;
Securities Litigation;
Acquisition Strategy;
Takeover Defenses;
Hedge Funds;
Shareholder Rights;
Proxy Contest;
Shareholder Special Meetings;
Legal Issues In Contested Takeovers;
Governing and Advisory Boards;
Mergers and Acquisitions;
Corporate Governance;
Management Teams;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Pharmaceutical Industry
- January 2016 (Revised January 2019)
- Supplement
The Allergan Board Under Fire (B)
By: Lynn S. Paine, Suraj Srinivasan, John C. Coates and David Lane
In 2014, the Allergan Inc. board of directors received a surprise takeover offer from Valeant Pharmaceuticals in alliance with hedge fund activist Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management. In the unprecedented arrangement between an acquirer and a hedge fund...
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Keywords:
Allergan, Inc.;
Valeant;
Ackman;
Pershing Square;
Tender Offer;
Activist Investors;
Business Models;
R＆D;
Board Of Directors;
Securities Litigation;
Acquisition Strategy;
Takeover Defenses;
Hedge Funds;
Shareholder Rights;
Proxy Contest;
Shareholder Special Meetings;
Legal Issues In Contested Takeovers;
Corporate Governance;
Investment Activism;
Business and Stakeholder Relations;
Business Model;
Business and Shareholder Relations;
Valuation;
Pharmaceutical Industry