Michael R. Levin, who runs The Activist Investor website, has produced a white paper, Effective Activism, on the Cheap that identifies 36 undervalued companies that fit his profile for “effective activism, on the cheap.” Michael likens the list to the companies generated in an Endangered Species / Darwin’s Darlings strategy.
Says Michael of the target companies in his white paper:
- These companies conceal significant potential value relative to their current market cap, with a potential to increase the average investment by about 75%.
- They have a concentrated investor base (ten largest investors own at least half of the outstanding shares), which allows an activist to influence management in creative and low-cost ways.
- They are also hardly micro- or small-cap investments, with an average market cap of $375 million (the highest at $1.8 billion), which should provide ample liquidity.
How cheap is “cheap”?
We estimate that an investor that confines its activism to companies with highly concentrated holdings can spend a tenth of the cost of a full proxy contest, and avoid the proxy solicitors, public relations firms, and legions of attorneys. For a fund manager that earns income in the form of fees (management and performance), this savings can make an activist strategy feasible, and even attractive.
Click here for more information on and to obtain a copy of the report.
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