US shareholders were increasingly likely to agitate for change last year, new data reveals.
According to a study from FactSet SharkWatch, 2007 saw a 17 per cent increase in the number of campaigns either lobbying for a new investment strategy or for a company or some of their subsidiaries to be sold off to return value to shareholders.
The rise brought the number of activist campaigns launched from 429 in 2006 to 501 this year, the Reuters news agency reports.
John Laide, product manager of FactSet SharkWatch, attributed the increased incidence of activism to a rise in the number of hedge funds.
He said: "There are so many out there…and they have to be active in terms of manufacturing returns: there are a lot of funds out there chasing a limited amount of situations."
Moreover, activism could be set to increase yet further this year, should economic woes continue to spread, he predicted.
"Most of these activists are value investors. So if things start getting beaten down, there will be plenty of opportunity for them."
