Activist investor Starboard Value takes $1 bln stake in Pfizer- WSJ

Investing.com– Activist investor Starboard Value has taken an around $1 billion stake in Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) and wants the drugmaker to make sweeping changes to turn around laggard performance, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. 

Starboard has approached two former Pfizer executives- Ian Read and Frank D’Amelio- who have in turn expressed interest in helping, the WSJ report said. Read was Pfizer’s former CEO, while D’Amelio was its CFO till 2021. 

Pfizer benefited greatly from demand for its vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic. But demand has cooled over the past two years, while earnings and share performance have lagged after the firm overestimated future pandemic-related demand. 

The firm was also accused of lacking discipline in its pandemic-era dealmaking, and has lagged its rivals Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) and Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) in rolling out highly popular weight loss drugs. 

Starboard had recently taken a stake in Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) with an aim to make the coffee giant boost its share price. It has also been active in the technology sector.