Shareholder activism – new tactics, new players and a change in tone

Shareholder activism continues to grow in the UK as it does globally, both in terms of capital deployed and the publicity it attracts. While shareholder activism is not a new concept in the UK, the type of investors involved in activist campaigns, the companies that they are targeting, the tools that activists are using and the outcomes that they are seeking to achieve have evolved over recent years. The more typical response of the board of a company that is targeted has also changed reflecting a change in tone and approach away from straight defence tactics alone, and towards that of ‘board preparedness’ and ‘constructive engagement’.