Daniel Loeb, head of Third Point Management, is notable for his use of sharply written letters directed towards the CEOs of his target companies.
Activism may help to address the principal-agent problem where the management (agents) do not adequately respond to the wishes of the principals (investors) of publicly traded companies.
[5] Activists have typically engaged in adversarial campaigns, but have also in some cases been able to acquire board seats with a formal proxy context.
[8] Some of the recent activist investment funds include: California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS),[9] Icahn Management LP, Santa Monica Partners Opportunity Fund LP, State Board of Administration of Florida (SBA),[10][11][12][13] and Relational Investors, LLC.
[3] Notable investors included Cyrus S. Eaton, Phoenix Securities Corporation, Benjamin Graham, J. Paul Getty, and Malcolm Chace.
[3] Notable activist investors include: Isaac Le Maire (1558–1624),[15] Carl Icahn,[16] Nelson Peltz (Trian Partners),[16] Bill Ackman (Pershing Square),[16] Daniel Loeb (Third Point Management),[16] Barry Rosenstein,[16] Larry Robbins (Glenview),[17]: 19 David Einhorn, Gregg Hymowitz (EnTrust Global),[18] Larry Fink (BlackRock),[19] Christer Gardell (Cevian Capital), and Ryan Cohen.
[21] In 2019, notable activist investors included Starboard Value, Icahn Enterprises, Elliott Investment Management, and Third Point.
The votes can then be all cast for (or against) a single ballot question, which makes it easier for minority shareholders to elect candidates.
A 2012 study by Activist Insight showed that the mean annual net return of over 40 activist-focused hedge funds had consistently outperformed the MSCI world index in the years following the global financial crisis in 2008.
[37] Various websites have been created to facilitate retail involvement,[38] including Moxy Vote, Shareowners.org, United States Proxy Exchange and ProxyDemocracy.org, but over time these generally shut down.
[36] Labor unions, including through pension funds such as CalPERS coalitions such as the Change to Win Federation often engage in shareholder proposals.
[40] Organizations such as the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), As You Sow and Ceres use shareholder resolutions, and other means of pressure, to address issues such as sustainability and human rights.