Activist investor Starboard Value has a roughly $1 billion stake in pharmaceutical giant Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and is seeking to mount a turnaround at the struggling company, according to people familiar with the matter.
The activist’s exact plans could not be learned, but Starboard has approached former Pfizer CEO Ian Read and ex-finance chief Frank D’Amelio, both of whom have expressed interest in supporting Starboard’s turnaround, said the people.
Starboard believes that Pfizer’s current leadership under CEO Albert Bourla has stepped away from historically disciplined cost structure and investment in novel drugs, the people said.
Pfizer’s revenue and free cash flow ballooned during the COVID-19 pandemic, thanks to the company’s fast-tracked vaccine. But its stock has not done well, trading about 30% lower than it did in 2019. That is in part due to an expensive acquisition strategy — nearly $70 billion in M&A since 2020 — the return of which some analysts have questioned.
One particularly concerning deal was Pfizer’s acquisition of Global Blood Therapeutics. Pfizer pulled a drug for sickle cell disease it got just two years ago via the roughly $5 billion acquisition. The company played down the financial impact in September, saying the drug Oxbryta brought in a little over $300 million last year.
Pfizer shares, meanwhile, gained $1.05, or 3.7%, Monday to $29.62.
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