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☆ Salesforce results give CEO Benioff ‘breathing room’ from activists for now, ‘Fast Money’ trader Steve Grasso said
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Salesforce 's strong earnings results should give CEO Marc Benioff some relief from ongoing activist pressure at the cloud software firm. "This gives him definitive breathing room right now," Steve Grasso, CEO of Grasso Global, said Wednesday on CNBC's " Fast Money ." Salesforce shares surged 15% in extended trading Wednesday after the cloud software maker beat expectations on the top and bottom lines , and issued a better forecast than Wall Street was expecting. Salesforce in recent months has faced increasing activist pressure from firms such as Elliott Management, Third Point and Starboard Value. To be sure, the strong results may not help Benioff for long, the "Fast Money" traders said.

☆ Salesforce shares jump 13% on better-than-expected forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Salesforce shares soared 16% in extended trading on Wednesday after the cloud software maker beat Wall Street estimates on profit and issued a better-than-expected forecast. Here's how the company did:Earnings: $1.68 per share, adjusted, vs. $1.36 per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. $1.68 per share, adjusted, vs. $1.36 per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. Revenue: $8.38 billion, vs. $7.99 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. Salesforce sees adjusted earnings per share for the full 2024 fiscal year of $7.12 to $7.14 and revenue of $34.5 billion to $34.7 billion.

☆ Don't act on new activist push for board seats at Salesforce before earnings, Benioff reaction
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Hedge fund Elliott Management's decision to nominate candidates for Salesforce 's (CRM) board represents an escalation of the activist agitation at the Club holding. The Club generally believes activists' wishes for cost-cutting at Salesforce are positive, as long as Benioff remains at the helm. It's unclear whether Elliott is nominating two or three candidates for Salesforce's board, according to CNBC's David Faber, who broke the story Wednesday morning . Benioff is chairman of Salesforce's board. However, we don't want the activist pressure at Salesforce to cause Benioff to depart the company.

☆ Cramer sees a 'good chance' Salesforce's Benioff will soon announce succession plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Jim Cramer suggested Saturday that plans for a leadership change at Club holding Salesforce (CRM) — helmed by co-founder Marc Benioff for more than two decades — may be disclosed in the near future. CRM YTD mountain Salesforce (CRM) YTD performance In early January, Salesforce announced a cost-cutting plan that included layoffs and office space reductions — moves that Jim has said were pushed for by Starboard . While Benioff has said he's "never leaving" Salesforce , the company has twice elevated an executive to the role of co-CEO. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Marc Benioff, founder, chairman and CEO of enterprise cloud computing company Salesforce.

☆ Salesforce, activist investor Elliott may soon reach deal - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Cloud-based software firm Salesforce Inc (CRM.N) and activist investor Elliott Management Corp are in discussions to reach an agreement that may end a possible board challenge, according to two people familiar with the matter. The battle at Salesforce has pitted Elliott as well as other activist investors against Marc Benioff, one of Silicon Valley's most iconic chief executives. Salesforce's growth has slowed dramatically in recent quarters and last month the company said it would cut 10% of jobs to address its performance. Representatives for Salesforce and Elliott declined to comment. Elliott too has long invested in technology companies and in the past reached settlements for board seats with companies including Pinterest (PINS.N), Twitter and eBay (EBAY.O).

☆ Here's how Wall Street pros traded 13 Club stocks last quarter, including Salesforce and Disney
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Big-name investors and hedge funds made moves in Club holdings Disney (DIS), Nvidia (NVDA) and TJX Companies (TJX) in the fourth quarter. Starboard's position stood at 3.03 million shares — valued at $401.22 million — at the end of the fourth quarter, according to the firm's 13F. Inclusive's 1.63 million shares were worth $216.77 million and ValueAct's 560,221 shares carried a market value of $74.28 million. CRM YTD mountain Salesforce (CRM) YTD performance In addition to Salesforce, a number of other Club holdings appeared in hedge funds' quarterly disclosures. Some of the activists swarming at Salesforce have positions in other Club holdings and made changes to them during the fourth quarter.

☆ Salesforce engineers are about to be hit with new performance metrics, while some salespeople are being pressured to quit
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Ellen Thomas | Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Some Salesforce employees have been offered a "Prompt Exit Package" instead of a layoff, with less severance. Employees say the company is ratcheting up performance expectations as activist investors invade. "The company is pushing hard for productivity tracking and metrics on all facets," one employee told Insider. Salesforce cut a few hundred salespeople in November, a person familiar with the matter told Insider, and the company told Insider the cuts were made for "accountability," implying that performance was a consideration. In some cases, the company has presented employees with PEP offers in the same week it has executed mass layoffs, employees told Insider.

☆ Activist investor ValueAct takes stake in Spotify
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 10 (Reuters) - ValueAct Capital Management has taken a stake in Spotify Technology SA (SPOT.N), at a time when the audio streaming company is looking to cut costs. "We welcome ValueAct as an investor in Spotify," a spokesperson for the Swedish company said on Friday, without disclosing further details on the investment. ValueAct Chief Executive Mason Morfit disclosed the investment during a presentation at a Columbia University event in New York on Friday, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported the stake. ValueAct, which declined to comment, distinguishes itself from other activist investors by preferring to stay behind the scenes and rarely presents its investment ideas publicly. However, a challenging economic environment set the stage for belt tightening, with Spotify Chief Executive Daniel Ek announcing layoffs and an organizational restructuring in January.

Marc Benioff, cofounder and CEO of Salesforce, attends a session at the Congress centre during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on January 17, 2023. Dan Loeb's hedge fund Third Point has built a position in Salesforce , expanding the group of activists circling the business software maker, CNBC has confirmed. The news comes two weeks after Salesforce said ValueAct Capital CEO Mason Morfit will join its board in March. Since, which joined the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 2020, has faced high-profile departures and slowing revenue growth of late and dealt with criticism for buying companies such as Slack and Tableau at high multiples. On Jan. 4, Salesforce shares rose more than 3% after the company announced a plan to cut 10% of employees.

☆ Yet another activist targets Salesforce — further validation there's money to be made in the stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A fifth activist investor has taken a stake in Club holding Salesforce (CRM), making loud and clear that well-respected hedge funds see a money-making opportunity in the enterprise software giant. With activist investing becoming more common since the Great Financial Crisis, Jiang said it's not unheard of for a single company to be targeted by multiple firms. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB.

☆ Third Point owns Salesforce stake, talks Bath & Body Works changes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Third Point declined to comment on its stake, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. These firms have said publicly and privately that they would like to see changes at Salesforce. Third Point on Wednesday updated its own investors about other investments, including one in Bath & Body Works (BBWI.N) , where the firm hinted last year that it might mount a boardroom challenge. In the letter, Third Point's founder billionaire investor Daniel Loeb wrote that he sees a chance to work "constructively" with Bath & Body Works to "address its apparent governance issues and help it realize its significant potential." Last years biggest losers included Walt Disney Co and Amazon.com while Bath & Body Works counted among its biggest winners.

☆ Salesforce Names Three Directors, Braces for Proxy Fight
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Dean Seal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Sachin Mehra, chief financial officer of Mastercard Inc., was named an independent director at Salesforce Inc.Salesforce Inc. has appointed three new directors, including the finance chief of Mastercard Inc., to its board as a potential proxy fight with activist investor Elliott Management Corp. looms. The business-software maker said Friday morning that Mastercard CFO Sachin Mehra , ValueAct Capital Chief Executive Mason Morfit and Arnold Donald , the former president and chief executive of Carnival Corp., have been named independent directors, effective March 1.

☆ Salesforce appoints new board directors amid activist investor pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 27 (Reuters) - Salesforce Inc (CRM.N) on Friday named three new board directors, including the chief of hedge fund ValueAct Capital, amid pressure from activist investors for better cost control and a management shakeup at the cloud-based software firm. The company appointed chief executive of hedge fund ValueAct Capital Mason Morfit, Mastercard (MA.N) finance chief Sachin Mehra and former chief executive of Carnival Corp (CCL.N) Arnold Donald to its board. Reuters reported on Thursday that Elliott Management Corp, the activist investment firm that recently made a multimillion-dollar investment in Salesforce, plans to nominate several director candidates. The company also said Sanford Robertson and Alan Hassenfeld, directors at Salesforce since 2003, will not stand for re-election. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Op-ed: Salesforce appoints ValueAct’s Morfit to its board and a proxy fight may loom ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The firm's principals are generally on the boards of half of ValueAct's core portfolio positions and have had 55 public company board seats over 22 years. Adding Morfit to the board of Salesforce makes a ton of sense regardless of the activist environment. Morfit has experience helping management increase both growth and margins from a board level, and both can be improved at Salesforce. The looming question is whether he will initially be doing this with an activist cloud hanging over the company's head in the form of a proxy fight by one of the other activists involved. It likely had been engaging with Salesforce management for several months, and this appointment may have happened just as a threatened proxy fight was reported.

☆ If Marc Benioff is forced to sell Slack to appease activist investors, it would probably be worth less than half the $28 billion he paid just 18 months ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Julie Bort | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

He calculated Slack would be worth less than half what Salesforce paid for it, and could still be worth selling. Salesforce founder and CEO Marc Benioff has multiple activist investors with stakes in his company, circling him to demand changes. One possible outcome is that Benioff is forced to sell or spinoff Slack, according to analysts. It paid more than twice that — $27.7 billion — in an acquisition that closed just 18 months ago. Under siege from fearsome activist investorsWhen we say Benioff has multiple activist investors circling, we mean he's practically under siege.

☆ Activist Elliott to nominate directors at Salesforce -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Elliott Management Corp, the activist investment firm that recently made a multimillion-dollar investment in Salesforce (CRM.N), plans to nominate several director candidates at the cloud-based software company, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Elliott, which invests more than $55 billion, is currently interviewing a number of people including technology industry executives and executives in other industries, the people said. Elliott has long invested in technology companies and in the past reached settlements for board seats with companies including Pinterest (PINS.N), Twitter and eBay (EBAY.O). News that Elliott expects to nominate directors, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, came after Bloomberg reported Salesforce was considering refreshing its board, a step some companies take preemptively if activists start building holdings of their shares. At Salesforce there are at least four activist investors including Elliott, Starboard Value, Jeff Ubben's Inclusive Capital and ValueAct, the firm Ubben founded and which is now run by Mason Morfit, sources familiar with the matter said.

☆ Facing growing calls for reform, Salesforce could use some fresh faces on its board
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The enterprise software giant is considering at least three potential board appointees, Bloomberg News reported Thursday , citing people with knowledge of the matter. Among those reportedly in conversation to join Salesforce's board are former Carnival Cruise CEO Arnold Donald, Mastercard CFO Sachin Mehra and Mason Morfit, the chief executive of ValueAct Capital. And the firm is now planning to nominate candidates for Salesforce's board, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday . Bottom line We're encouraged by the Bloomberg report because Salesforce's board could undoubtedly use a refresh, with multiple directors having served for 10 years or more, according to FactSet. New board members, coupled with growing activist pressure, could could be just the boost Salesforce needs and that the market wants to see.

☆ Exclusive: ValueAct calls for Seven & i to spin off 7-Eleven retail chain
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

ValueAct argued a tax-free spin-off of 7-Eleven could be completed through a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in roughly a year. But it also noted the board may receive a proposal to buy the whole company during its ongoing strategic review. "We understand that Seven & i can combine 7-Eleven, Inc. and Seven-Eleven Japan and execute a tax-free spin-off to launch a global champion 7-Eleven listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange about 12 months from now," the letter said. Seven & i is currently conducting a strategic review and has pledged to announce its decisions by early March. Ever since first making its investment in Seven & i known in 2021, ValueAct has said other investors have reached out to the firm about its references to a possible spin off of 7-Eleven.

☆ ValueAct's Morfit sees Insight Enterprises stock surging as cloud computing grows
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Mason Morfit, the firm's chief executive and chief investment officer, said the company's stock price, currently trading at $87.63, could climb to as high as $500 a share in the next five years. Morfit said he was speaking out about Insight because it is broadly overlooked by the market. As Insight helps transform its partner companies, it is also transforming itself having hired a new chief executive earlier this year and having changed the bulk of senior management. For ValueAct, betting on the megatrend of digital transformation started when Morfit had a board seat at Microsoft (MSFT.O) years ago. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Lisa ShumakerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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