Will Activist Investor Get His Way at Campbell?

Photo of Chris Lange
By Chris Lange Updated Published
This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.
Will Activist Investor Get His Way at Campbell?

© campbellsoupcompany.com

Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB) shares saw a nice bounce on Tuesday after activist investor Dan Loeb was said to be shaking things up. Loeb’s message seems pretty simple and is an appropriate measure considering the direction in which the soup maker has been headed recently.

Campbell’s stock has been in free fall for the past year. This was a $60 stock as recently as February 2017, and it has hit lows not seen in over five years in the past two weeks. The stock has only now just recovered from mid-May when it last reported earnings and its CEO resigned.

Like every other activist investor — with the exception of maybe Bill Ackman — Loeb sees the company as undervalued and is petitioning the board to do something about it.

[nativounit]

According to the New York Post, Loeb’s Third Point hedge fund is in talks with family members who control roughly 41% of Campbell’s shares and with independent Campbell investors about supporting a plan that would result in hiring a bank to explore a possible sale of the 149-year-old company. This comes from two sources close to the situation, said the New York Post.

It was previously rumored, by the New York Post again, that Kraft Heinz Co. (NASDAQ: KHC) may be looking to gobble up the soup maker. Almost any deal that Campbell might get out of Kraft may just be worth it to the shareholders to get this stock off their hands.

Shares of Campbell Soup were last seen up about 4% at $41.87, with a consensus analyst price target of $35.85 and a 52-week range of $32.63 to $54.37.

[recirclink id=474383]

[wallst_email_signup]

Photo of Chris Lange
About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.

Continue Reading

Top Gaining Stocks

CBOE Vol: 1,568,143
PSKY Vol: 12,285,993
STX Vol: 7,378,346
ORCL Vol: 26,317,675
DDOG Vol: 6,247,779

Top Losing Stocks

LKQ
LKQ Vol: 4,367,433
CLX Vol: 13,260,523
SYK Vol: 4,519,455
MHK Vol: 1,859,865
AMGN Vol: 3,818,618