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Jeff Smith, chief executive officer and chief investment officer of Starboard Value LP.
Activist investor Starboard Value has ended its fight against Bristol-Myers Squibb’s buyout of peer biotechnology company Celgene after two prominent proxy advisors announced their support for the deal earlier on Friday.
shareholders vote in favor of its bid.
“Despite the substantial swell of support against this transaction, it is extremely difficult for shareholders to prevail without a supportive recommendation from ISS and Glass Lewis to vote against the transaction,” Starboard said in a press release. “Therefore, Starboard has decided to withdraw its proxy solicitation to vote against the Celgene transaction.”
Though Starboard said it still plans to vote against the transaction at the April 12 shareholder meeting, the decision to pull its proxy solicitation represents a defeat for the fund, which announced its opposition one month ago.
Though ISS and Glass Lewis do not have an official say in how investors vote their shares, global passive fund managers like Vanguard often factor in their recommendations when casting their ballots. Celgene shares rose more than 7 percent in midday trading, while Bristol-Myers dropped 1.2 percent.
This is a developing story. Check back here for more updates.
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