This article first appeared on Diligent Market Intelligence's Activism newswire. To register for a demonstration and trial of the product, click here.
As investors become more willing to take a public stance, the U.S. activism landscape continues to attract a wave of new players.
According to Diligent Market Intelligence (DMI) data, almost 60 investment groups made their first public demands at U.S.-based companies in the opening half of the year, with over 120 joining the fold in 2025.
Below, DMI takes a look at some of the more traditional investors who shifted away from the sidelines this season:
Cap 1 is based in Oklahoma and was founded in 2011. Summer Road, which serves as Cap 1's investment manager, was the only U.S. activist to secure a board seat via a vote in the opening half of the year, installing its Chief Investment Officer Rory Held at Ingles Markets' May meeting. Its campaign was pitched on bringing "a sense of accountability" into a boardroom it said was dominated by Chairman Robert Ingle, son of the supermarket chain’s founder.
Diligence Capital Management describes itself as a financial sector-focused investment manager with "a business owner mindset" which operates through shareholder engagement and activism. In March, it nominated three directors, including its own CEO and Chief Investment Officer James Abbott, to the board of Eagle Bancorp as part of a broader push to improve the community lender’s performance. The target subsequently deemed the fund’s proxy materials invalid due to "material omissions and other material deficiencies."
Four Tree Island Advisory is a New Hampshire-based registered investment advisory firm. In a January statement that pushed for change at aviation services provider Willis Lease Finance, the fund manager revealed that after private engagement, the time had come "for a broader, public discussion about WLFC’s potential and the steps required to realize it." It later rolled out a withhold campaign targeting all management proposals with the exception of the auditor's appointment.
Friedland Enterprises is a Florida-based advisory and investment firm founded by entrepreneur Christian Friedland. In January, the Build.com founder called on Lulu's Fashion Lounge to reconstitute its board and explore strategic options, including a sale. In April, the dissident investor commended the brand for operational and financial improvements and pulled back from its demand for a board refresh but maintained its call for a strategic review.
Founded in 2012 by former Bain Capital associate Steve Pei, Gratia Capital has its base in California. In January, it disclosed plans to hold talks with commercial real estate finance specialist TPG RE Finance Trust about its dividend and strategic positioning. In another engagement, clean energy company Comstock appointed three new directors following a settlement deal with hedge fund MAK Capital and discussions with other investors, including Gratia Capital.
The former manager of ASA Gold and Precious Metals, Merk Investments, turned the tables on Saba Capital Management with a July call on regulators to investigate the board’s actions tied to the fund’s switch to an internal management team led by Saba’s Paul Kazarian. Merk, a 1.7% shareholder in ASA, also raised concerns that Saba is looking to shift the fund's focus from gold to credit while claiming that ‘‘retail investors are furious because they invested in ASA for its best-in-class investment performance in the precious metals mining sector.’’
Dublin-based Pineal Capital Management is an alternative investment firm managing a global special opportunities fund. In April, it made a public call on Teladoc Health to consider a break-up and to carry out a minimum of $200 million in share repurchases. It further warned that the company needs to quickly address its falling valuation or face "an opportunistic takeover approach."
In April, retail activist investment firm Randian Capital made a public push for sweeping reforms at messaging platform Snap in a bid to address what it described as "years of value erosion." One day earlier, established activist fund Irenic Capital Management had urged the social media company to make operational and governance changes. In July, Randian turned its attention to LoanDepot, pressing the mortgage company to weigh a sale as part of a strategic review.
A tech target also proved to be the draw for Spruce Point Capital Management, a firm which is better known as an established short seller. In an April letter to Zoom Communications, Ben Axler's New York-based investment management firm argued that while the platform is "one of the great corporate growth stories," its share price has "dramatically" underperformed. It put forward nine recommendations including capital allocation improvements, a reduction in operating expenses, a focus on international revenue and a renewed approach to marketing.
Outside of fund managers and investment firms, over 40% of the season's first-time activists were concerned shareholders with former CEOs among the most prominent participants. In May, Toby Neugebauer, a co-founder and former CEO at Fermi, nominated a five-director slate in a bid to take control of the data-center developer’s board and then launch a strategic review. The dissident suspended his proxy campaign in July following a last-minute legal hitch. At Whitestone REIT, another former CEO turned to activism when James Mastandrea launched a campaign to overhaul the shopping mall operator’s board, citing poor performance since his departure in 2022. A day after he filed a definitive proxy statement with a six-seat slate, the target announced an agreement to be acquired by Ares Management, with the deal getting shareholder approval in July.
An evolution
The breadth of this year’s newcomers points to a broader evolution in shareholder activism, with tactics once associated primarily with activist-focused hedge funds now being adopted by founders, former executives and other stakeholders.
"The rise of founder-led, hybrid, and other non-traditional activism reflects a broader democratization of activist tactics," Bill Dooley, managing director, M&A and activism at Sodali & Co, told DMI in an interview earlier this year. "Strategies once deployed only by activist-focused hedge funds are now accessible to frustrated founders and other stakeholders."
The introduction of the universal proxy card (UPC) in 2022 has been cited as one factor behind the expansion. The tool enabled shareholders to vote on a single card listing both management and dissident nominees and lowered the ownership threshold for nominating, making it easier for investors to mount a board challenge without running a full-slate campaign.
Technology is also viewed to have lowered the barrier to entry even further by making potential value opportunities easier to identify.
"There are screening tools that activists can and are using to identify underperforming companies. It's never been easier for someone interested in a first-time activist type of campaign to find a target," Nick Capuano, partner at Kekst CNC, told DMI in an interview earlier this year.
