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180 Degree Capital has taken a 6% stake in sandwich chain Potbelly Corporation (NASDAQ: PBPB).
According to its website, 180 Degree is a publicly traded registered closed-end fund focused on investing in and providing value-added assistance through constructive activism to what it believes are substantially undervalued small, publicly traded companies that have potential for significant turnarounds. In the filing 180 Degree included general 13D language in the "Purpose of transaction". According to the 13D filing, 180 Degree's recent transactions in PBPB were in the $3.96 to $4.32 per share range since December 2019. Shares closed today at $4.12 per share. Disclaimer: Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have a position in PBPB, but may potentially purchase or dispose of shares pending further analysis and market conditions.
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Joseph Stilwell and his affiliates have taken a 5% stake in Garrison Capital Inc. (NASDAQ: GARS), a BDC that invests primarily in the debt and equity of middle-market companies.
Stilwell who is known for investing in small banks and financial institution, made his filing shortly after Corbin Capital Partners filed its own 13D filing disclosing a 7.7% stake in GARS. In November 2019, GARS announced that it had hired financial advisers to explore strategic alternatives. Stilwell recently had success in 2019 with Alcentra Capital, after the firm eventually agreed to sell it self to Crescent Capital. According to the filing, Stilwell's transactions in GARS were in the $5.953 to $6.205 range earlier this month. Shares closed yesterday at $6.32. Disclaimer: Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have a position in GARS, but may potentially purchase or dispose of shares pending further analysis and market conditions. Snap shot of the executive summary below. See this link for the full deck.  Activist J. Carlo Cannell has taken a 7.3% stake in Hudson global Inc.Activist J. Carlo Cannell has taken a 7.3% stake in Hudson Global Inc. (NASDAQ: HSON) the provider of recruitment process outsourcing and managed services. The company seems to have an attractive value proposition, with a market cap of ~$45m, a cash balance of $39mm and no debt (see exhibit A below from HSON recent investor presentation). 13D Filing Purpose of transaction: "Cannell Capital LLC, on behalf of the Investment Vehicles, identified the Company as an entity satisfying each of the Investment Vehicle's investment criteria. The Investment Vehicles acquired and continue to hold the Shares as a long-term investment. CC reserves the right to discuss various views and opinions with respect to the Company and its business plans with the Company or the members of its senior management. The discussion of such views and opinions may extend from ordinary day-to-day business operations to matters such as nominees for representation on the Company’s board of directors, senior management decisions and extraordinary business transactions. Mr. Cannell reserves the right to take such action as he may deem necessary from time to time to seek to maximize the value of the Shares. Such actions may include, but may not necessarily be limited to, pursuit of strategic initiatives to enhance shareholder value. CC may engage in any of the actions specified in Items 4(a) through 4(j) to the Schedule 13D general instructions. Except as set forth above, CC has no present plans or proposals that relate to or would result in any of the transactions described in Item 4 of Schedule 13D." Cannell's purchases were in the $1.43-$1.51 per share range. The writer DOES at the timing of writing this post have a long position in HSON- the position was taken today after the 13D filing was made. Depending on further research and market conditions the writer may dispose of or acquire more shares in the HSON. Exhibit A: From HSON Investor Presentation Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does at the time of writing have a long position in HSON, and may potentially purchase or dispose of shares pending further analysis and market conditions. Today, Lawrence Seidman, the activist investor who in the past has been characterized as Mr. Potter from It's a Wonderful Life (see this old Forbes article for some background on Mr. Seidman) has increased his stake in Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ: BWFG) to 7.29% of the community bank. Seidman's first 13D filing in BWFG was made earlier this month on Dec 13, 2018, with the below Purpose of transaction: "The Reporting Persons originally purchased the Shares based on the Reporting Persons’ belief that the Shares, when purchased, were undervalued and represented an attractive investment opportunity." Siedman also stated that he had several conversations and meetings with company management. Subsequent to this first 13D filing, on Dec 19th BWFG announced a 400,000 share buyback program. The current stock price of ~$28.65 (mid-day) is just slightly above Siedman's average purchase price (based on latest 13D filing) of $28.15. Create a free account to start following hedge funds Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have any positions in BWFG, but may potentially purchase shares pending further analysis and market conditions. Today private equity firm Silver Lake Partners (and its affiliates) filed a 13D disclosing an increased beneficial ownership in The Madison Square Garden Company (NYSE: MSG). Silver Lake's first 13D filing disclosing ownership in MSG was made earlier this year in Feb. Based on the SEC filings, Silver Lake's average purchase price has been ~$233 per share. In the Purpose of Transaction, Silver Lake make reference to MSG's assets being undervalued by the market. Taking a cursory look at MSG's balance sheet looks like there is not too much debt on those hard assets either, if that cursory examination is right this could be an ideal target for a leverage buyout which Silver Lake has experience with. Create a free account to start following hedge funds Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have any positions in MSG, but may potentially purchase shares pending further analysis and market conditions.
The very aggressive activist investor Paul Singer is one of our favorite investors. Bloomberg does a great overview of his career:
Today Altai Capital sent a letter to the board Amber Road (NYSE: AMBR) in which, among other things, Altai expressed its loss of faith in AMBR's Board and management’s commitment to protect shareholder interests and maximize value given AMBR's poor performance, repeated growth projection misses, and unwillingness to engage with E2open which wanted to acquire AMBR at what remains a premium to AMBR’s trading price. Further, the Altai demanded that the Board form an independent committee and engage financial advisors immediately in order to sell AMBR. Altai concluded the Letter to the Board with a commitment to take action, including nominating independent directors to the Board if necessary, if the Board refuses to pursue a strategic review. You can find the full letter here. Subscribers of 13D Alerts received an email alert when this letter was filed with the SEC along with the 13D filing. Create a free account to start following hedge funds Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have any positions in AMBR, but may potentially purchase shares pending further analysis and market conditions. Alcentra Capital Corporation Adopts Share Repurchase PlanAlcentra Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: ABDC), a provider of debt financing solutions to middle-market companies, announced today that the Company has adopted a share repurchasing program. This action comes after nearly a year of pressure from 13D filer Stilwell Value, an activist fund. ABDC closed trading today at $6.61 per share, below the $7-$8 price range Stilwell began buying back in fall of 2017 (see original 13D filing price tables). Stilwell has been on a mission to get the company to narrow the discount to NAV that the company is trading at (as of the last 10Q, ABDC's NAV per share was ~$11 per share). Stilwell stated in their last ABDC 13D/A: "We hope to work with the Issuer to reduce its share price discount to net asset value. We informed management at a meeting on January 5, 2018, and reiterated several times throughout the year, that if the Issuer does not repurchase 10% of its shares in 2018, we will aggressively seek board representation." Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have any positions in ABDC, but may potentially purchase shares pending further analysis and market conditions. Engaged Capital Pushes the Restaurant Group to explore strategic alternativesToday activist fund Engaged Capital filed a 13D disclosing an approximately 9.99% stake in Del Frisco's Restaurant Group (NASDAQ: DFRG). Engaged also included a letter to the Del Frisco's board in its filing. Highlights from the letter below: "
The letter includes further analysis and peer comparisons highlighting Del Frisco's under performance. You can view the full letter here. Del Frisco's stock price was up 16.5% on the this news. 13D Alerts subscribers received an alert this morning before market open for this filing. Create a free account to start following hedge funds Disclaimer:
Information provided here or in email alerts does not constitute investment advice nor an offer to sell securities. The information provided is for research purposely only and we do not take any responsibility for any loss or damage including and without limitation to any loss which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information. The writer of this article does not at the time of writing have any positions in DFRG, but may potentially purchase shares pending further analysis and market conditions. |
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