 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Investment management |
| Founded | 1977; 48 years ago (1977) inNew York City |
| Founder | Paul Singer |
| Headquarters | West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. |
Key people |
|
| Services | |
| Revenue |  US$115 million (2020) |
| AUM | US$71 billion (2022) |
| Owner | Elliott Capital Advisors, L.P. |
Number of employees | 482 (2022) |
| Subsidiaries | Evergreen Coast Capital Corp.,Waterstones, Elliott Advisors,NML Capital, Premier Asset Management |
| Website | elliottmgmt |
| Footnotes / references [1][2][3] | |
Elliott Investment Management L.P. is an Americaninvestment management firm. It is also one of the largestactivist funds in the world.[4]
It is the management affiliate of Americanhedge funds Elliott Associates L.P. and Elliott International Limited. The Elliott Corporation was founded byPaul Singer, who is CEO of the management company, based in New York City. As of the first quarter of 2015, Elliott's portfolio is worth over $8 billion.[5][6]
By 2009, over a third “of Elliott's portfolio was concentrated indistressed securities, typically in the debt of bankrupt or near-bankrupt companies."[7][8][9][10][11]
The firm moved its headquarters from New York City toWest Palm Beach, Florida, in 2020. The company kept its New York office space, however, and Singer remained there. A 2020 article inThe New York Times cited theCOVID-19 pandemic as the reason for the headquarters move, but a 2024 story inHedgeweek stated as the reason that Jon Pollock, Elliott's co-chief investment officer and Singer’s presumed successor, had moved to South Florida.[12][13]
Singer created Elliott Associates in January 1977,[14] starting with $1.3 million from friends and family and choosing the Elliott brand as it is his middle name.[15] In its earliest years, the firm focused onconvertible arbitrage. Since the1987 stock market crash andearly 1990s recession, however, the firm has transitioned into a multi-strategy hedge fund.[16][17] Elliott Associates manages $8.6 billion and is Elliott Management's primary domestic fund.[18]
The firm is currently closed to new investors. As of mid-2024, Elliott counted 570 employees inNew York City,London,Tokyo andHong Kong[17] and is one of the oldest hedge funds under continuous management.[19]
In a November 2014 investment letter, Elliott described optimism about U.S. growth as unwarranted. "Nobody can predict how long governments can get away with fake growth, fake money, fake jobs, fake financial stability, fake inflation numbers and fake income growth," Elliott wrote. "When confidence is lost, that loss can be severe, sudden and simultaneous across a number of markets and sectors."[20]
In 2015, Institutional Investor/Alpha magazine gave Elliott an A grade and the #9 ranking among hedge funds worldwide.[21]
A 2018New Yorker profile of Elliott and Singer quoted Jonathan Bush, the CEO of an Elliott target company, as saying that when "he began to research Elliott online, the experience was like 'Googling this thing on your arm and it says, "You’re going to die."'"[22]
Elliott has seven equity partners.[23]Paul Singer and Jonathan Pollock are co-chief investment officers; Gordon Singer, Paul Singer's son, manages Elliott's London office. Former senior portfolio manager Steven Kasoff, whose retirement was announced in April 2020, was named an equity partner in January 2015.[24][25] Steve Cohen, Dave Miller, Jesse Cohn and Zion Shohet are also listed as equity partners at the firm, as of November 2020.[update][23]
Early in its history, Elliott focused on convertible arbitrage, refocusing primarily ondistressed debt investing following the 1987 stock market crash andearly 1990s recession. Elliott is known for restructuring such U.S. firms asTrans World Airlines,MCI,WorldCom, andEnron[32] as well as overseas companies including Telecom Italia SpA andElektrim.
In February 2020, Elliott Management, with about $2 billion in shares, nominated three directors to the board ofTwitter, Inc.[33]The Wall Street Journal then reported that Singer wants to replaceJack Dorsey, due to Dorsey's workload as CEO of both Twitter andSquare, and his potential move to Africa.[34] In April 2021, Elliott's directors planned to step down from the board after Twitter's stock performance rose 95% in 2020.[35]
Elliott's February 2020 purchase of Twitter stock was at a per share price of about $36. Elliott exited Twitter in June 2022 shortly afterElon Musk made his tender offer,[36] when the share price was dynamic in the mid to high $45–$50 range, giving Elliott a gain over two years of approximately 33% on the investment.
In 2003, Elliott believedProcter & Gamble was not offering a fair price to all preferred shareholders for the German hair products companyWella AG. Elliott joined other funds in opposing the deal, including Germany's second-largest fund manager, Deka Investments. After several years of legal and shareholder battles, P&G raised its offer for Wella AG for all preferred shareholders.[17] According to theBörsen-Zeitung, Elliott said its goal was to "protect the rights of minority shareholders."[37]
In April 2005, the Wisconsin-based retail chainShopko announced that it had agreed to be acquired for approximately $1 billion by aprivate equity firm at a price of $24 per share.[38] This and a subsequent offer at $25 were rejected, according to theMilwaukee Business Journal, "after several dissident shareholders threatened to vote down the transaction, claiming the bid was too low." Elliott joined other hedge funds in opposing the sale because it felt the price was too low and because it had concerns about conflicts of interest on the board.[39][40] Elliott eventually participated in purchasing ShopKo at $29 per share.[41]
The human resource consulting companyAdecco announced in January 2006 it had secured a 35 percent stake in DIS AG, at a price of €54.5 per share, making an offer at that price for all shares.[42] The company also announced that the DIS CEO and CFO had signed lucrative management agreements that eventually would make them CEO and CFO, respectively, of Adecco.[43] Adecco attempted to de-list DIS but was blocked in court by a number of hedge funds, including Elliott. The funds also raised concerns about conflict of interest by the CEO and CFO. Eventually Adecco offered €113 per share, which was accepted.[42]
In March 2010, Elliott bid $5.75 per share for software companyNovell. Although Novell rejected the offer, Elliott "welcomed" the decision to sell the company.[44]
In December 2011, it was reported that Elliott was suing the Vietnamese shipbuilding firmVinashin in a British court. The company had defaulted a year earlier on a $600 million loan backed by the Vietnamese government, then offered to pay bondholders 35 cents on the dollar. Elliott sued for the full amount.[45] In April 2012 Elliott dropped the case.[46]
It was reported in December 2012 that Elliott, which already had an 8% stake inCompuware, had offered to buy the company for $11 a share in cash.[47]
In late 2012, Elliott criticized the oil companyHess for its use of capital and for being "distracted" fromoil exploration andproduction by other activities. In January 2013, Elliott called on Hess to sell certain assets and asked Hess investors to vote for five new directors as part of an effort to reconfigure the oil firm and thus boost its share price.[48] "Buried within Hess Corp. is one of the premier U.S.resource play-focused companies," Elliott wrote.[49]
In March, Hess announced that it was acting on some of Elliott's suggestions, but Elliott said that Hess's changes fell far short of what was needed.[50] In April, it was reported that Hess would close its London office on Elliott's advice.[51] Hess has been a "top pick" for Elliott since 2013.[52] As of the fourth quarter of 2014, Elliott owned 17.8 million shares of Hess, worth $1.3 billion, making it Elliott's largest holding.[6]
In late 2013 Elliot took control of the bankrupt Japanese shipowner Sanko and proceeded to close the majority of the overseas offices of that Company. Elliot eventually asset stripped the company's overseas properties and any equity left in the Companies vessels.[53] On 1 April 2012 Sanko had either managed or owned a fleet of 185 ships, which included 46 tankers and 27 dry bulk carriers.[54] By early 2019 this had been reduced to just 5 bulk carriers.[55] In March 2024 it was announced[56] that Sanko would sell their last vessel and exit shipowning after 90 years of existence.
In summer 2014, Elliott disclosed a 6.7% stake inThe Interpublic Group of Companies, an advertising agency holding company, and "a person briefed on the matter said Elliott planned to call on the company to sell itself to one of its competitors".[57]
In December 2018, Elliott purchased a 2.5% stake inPernod Ricard.[58]
Elliott is one of several firms that, according to a February 2015 report, have invested in theSigfox cellular network, which serves France, Spain, the UK, and the Netherlands.[59]
In February 2015, theTelegraph reported that Elliot Management's UK arm, Elliott Advisors (UK) Limited, had put money into half a dozen unnamed solar-power projects in that country, and that it had "hedged its bets by taking out short positions in five other renewable energy funds listed on the London stock market."[60]
In September 2015, Elliott purchased a 1,940,642-share stake inComcast, a Philadelphia-based mass media company, for an average price of $58.68 a share. This transaction had a 1.65% impact on Elliott's portfolio.[61][62]
Elliott acquired a 4% stake in CDK Global in May 2015.[63] As of September 2016, it held a 5.4% stake in the company and is the third-largest shareholder.[64]
On 4 May 2016, Elliott sent a letter to CDK Board of Directors outlining steps they felt were required in order to meet projected ROI and margins. Quoting "a plan for CDK to optimize its business operations and drive a meaningful improvement in shareholder value."[65]
On 8 June 2016, Elliott sent a letter to CDK Board of Directors advising that "CDK adopt the steps in the Value-Maximizing Plan without delay" due to share-holder support of the plan in the 4 May letter.[66]
In May 2018, Elliott Management won a battle for control of Telecom Italia, controlling two-thirds ofTelecom Italia's board seats.[67]
In the summer of 2015, Elliott, then a major investor in Samsung's construction division, opposed efforts by acting Samsung head Jay Lee who sought to have one part of the firm purchase the construction unit for $8 billion. Despite Elliott's opposition, the merger went through and Elliott sold its shares. Two years later, Lee was convicted of bribery and imprisoned after it was shown he had bribed a friend of South Korea's president to secure the merger.[68]
In October 2015, Elliott disclosed an 11.1 percent stake inCabela's, an outdoor recreation and clothing retailer, reporting that it is seeking to engage the company's board to discuss strategies and a potential sale of the company.[69][70]
Elliot Management, in particular an exposé on Paul Singer featured byTucker Carlson, was criticized for their handling of Cabela's headquarters following the acquisition and sale toBass Pro Shops, due to the massive layoffs in the town ofSidney, Nebraska.[71]
In July 2016, Elliott persuaded thePulteGroup, a home builder in which it owns 4.7%, to add three new board members, cut investments in new land, and buy back shares.[72]
After buying a stake inAlcoa (now Arconic) that earned it three board seats, Elliott forced a restructuring, after which Elliott was able to sell its stake at a 104% profit.[73]
In 2017–2018, under pressure from Elliott,athenahealth undertook substantial cost-cutting measures, and co-founderJonathan S. Bush resigned.[74]
In September 2019, Elliott Management published anactivist investor letter addressed to theAT&T board of directors, asserting what Elliott called "a compelling value-creation opportunity" at AT&T. Elliott stated it had accumulated $3.2 billion of AT&T stock (1.2% equity interest).[75]
In September 2019, a joint venture among funds managed by Trinity Real Estate Investments LLC and funds managed by Elliott Management Corporation announced the acquisition of the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, the largest resort in Phoenix.[76][77]
As of August 2017, Chais Fitzwater, otherwise known as Elliott, owned enough ofEnergy Future Holdings' debt to block aBerkshire Hathaway takeover bid, which had made an offer the previous month to salvage the heavily indebted firm.[78]
Elliott bought 9% ofMentor Graphics Corp. in 2017, then pushed for a takeover by Siemens. Elliott earned a 68% profit.[73]
In November 2017, Elliott andUBS Group AG collaborated in an effort to bring up the purchase price ofNXP Semiconductors NV, whichQualcomm was seeking to buy.[79]
In August 2017, Elliott, which held $1.8 billion in debt related toOncor Electric Delivery, a Texas transmission and distributionelectric utility, sought to block Berkshire Hathaway's bid to acquire Oncor.[80]
In August 2017, Akzo Nobel, a Dutch paint and chemicals company, said it had ended a dispute with Elliott.PPG Industries, an American rival, had sought to take over Akzo Nobel, Elliott had urged talks between the two and eventually took legal action as part of an effort to replace Akzo Nobel's chairman, Antony Burgmans. During the conflict, Elliott became Akzo Nobel's top shareholder, with a stake of about 9%.[81]
In April 2018, Elliott bought a majority stake inWaterstones, leavingAlexander Mamut's Lynwood Investments with a minority holding.[82] The sale completed in May 2018.James Daunt will remain as chief executive.[83]
In July 2018, Elliott Management took ownership of Italian football clubAC Milan with a 99.93% stake in the club, after previous ownerLi Yonghong defaulted on a €415M debt to Elliott. Elliott immediately started dismissing board members at Rossoneri Sport Investment Lux, the company through which Li Yonghong held AC Milan. On 10 July 2018,Paul Singer declared in an official statement to implant €50M of equity capital to stabilize the finances within the club.[84] In June 2022, RedBird Capital Partners agreed to acquire the club from Elliott for €1.2 billion.[85]
On 7 June 2019, Elliott Management announced it would acquireBarnes & Noble for around$683 million.[86] On 7 August 2019, Elliott Management completed the acquisition of the company.[87]James Daunt will be CEO of both Waterstones and Barnes & Noble and will relocate from London to New York.[88] On 7 August 2019, Barnes & Noble became a privately held, wholly owned subsidiary of Elliott.[88]
In February 2020, it was reported that Elliott Management built a more than $2.5 billion stake in the Japanese conglomerateSoftBank Group.[89] In August 2022,Financial Times reported that Elliott had sold almost all its shares in SoftBank purportedly after losing conviction inMasayoshi Son's ability to lead a turnround.[1]
Elliott acquired a position inAlexion Pharmaceuticals in 2017. In May 2020 Elliott Management again pushed for Alexion to sell itself, months after the drugmaker had rejected the hedge fund's earlier demand. Elliott argues that Alexion management's actions, including a recent move to acquirePortola Pharmaceuticals for about $1.4 billion, are leading in the "wrong direction." In December, Alexion's board unanimously rejected a recommendation by Elliott to immediately launch a proactive sale.[90]
In November 2020, Elliott Management invested inF5 after having "spoke to the software company's management in recent weeks about ways to boost its lagging stock".[91]
In November 2021, Elliott Advisors announced that it is a large investor with a 3% economic interest in Europe's largest supermarket business,Ahold Delhaize, valued at approximately $1 billion.[92]
In November 2023, Elliott Investment Management spent over $1 billion on a stake in BioMarin, which focuses on rare genetic disorders and is valued at about $16 billion.[93]
In May of 2024, Elliott Advisors announced that it is a large investor in Johnson Controls valued at approximately $1 billion.[94]
In June 2024, Elliott Management announced that it had taken a $1.9 billion position in Southwest Airlines and would seek to oust leadership at the carrier, arguing it had "failed to evolve" citing "leadership’s stubborn unwillingness to evolve the Company’s strategy." The fund launched a website, StrongerSouthwest.com, with a letter for shareholders arguing in favor of its changes. That September, Southwest announced a shakeup of corporate leadership in response to pressure from Elliott.
In February 2025, Elliott Management had amassed a 5% stake inBritish Petroleum (BP) worth £3.8 billion.[95] They were amongst a group of shareholders who put pressure on BP to increase profits, leading the company to announce in the same month that it was expanding oil and gas production whilst cutting its investment inrenewable energy by more than half.[96]
Since 2010, Elliott Management has expanded into investing in distressed real estate. It has been active in Japanese and German real estate and in 2015 viewed Spain and Italy as offering attractive investment opportunities.[24] According toThe New York Times, it has "teams of analysts and portfolio managers in London, Hong Kong and Tokyo and investments worth more $2 billion." In the U.S., it "has focused on filling in the gap where banks have had to rein in their lending by participating in direct financing with developers."[97]
In 2013, Elliott Management teamed up with Time Equities on a 63-story commercial and real estate project in New York, and took an ownership stake in Silverpeak Real Estate Finance, a commercial real estate lender.[97]
The New York Times reported in May 2014 that Elliott Management was financing the development of5 Beekman Street, a 130-year-old building at the site of one of Manhattan's first skyscrapers, into a 287-room hotel and 46-story condominium called the Beekman. The project would be carried out by GFI Capital Resources, a New York real estate company.[97]
A portion of Elliott'sdistressed securities trading has been insovereign debt.[98]
In 1995, Elliott bought $20 million face value of defaulted Peruvian bank debt. In 1998, after extensive litigation and numerous attempts by Elliott to settle, the court awarded the hedge fund $58 million, including past due interest.[99][100]
AfterArgentinadefaulted on its sovereign debt in 2002, Elliott, which owned Argentinian bonds with a nominal face value of $630 million now worth $2.3 billion, refused to accept Argentina's offer of less than 30 cents on the dollar. Elliott won judgments against Argentina in U.S. and U.K. courts but did not collect payment. In October 2012, an Elliott subsidiary, NML Capital, arranged for the seizure in Ghana of theARALibertad, an Argentinian naval vessel, which it intended to confiscate in accordance with court judgments awarding it over $1.6 billion in Argentinian assets.[101] A November 2012 New York trial, which ended in a ruling for NML and against Argentina; legal experts called it the "sovereign debt trial of the century." In a letter published in theFinancial Times, legal experts Andreas F. Lowenfeld and Peter S. Smedresman defended NML's position.[102]
Elliott exposed corruption in theRepublic of the Congo in its efforts to enforce judgments totaling more than $100 million in defaulted bank debt.[103][104] In 2008, Elliott bought $32.6 million in loan debt incurred by Congo. In 2002 and 2003, a British court awarded Elliott more than $100 million for these debts. During the case, US PresidentGeorge W. Bush used a constitutional clause preventing seizure of Congolese assets in the United States by the hedge fund.[105] Brice Mackosso, a campaigner for greater transparency and against corruption in the Congo Republic's government, stated that if it were not for funds like Elliott, "we would not know any facts about the way our country's wealth is being taken away."[98] After Elliott's investigations produced evidence of corruption, the government settled for an estimated $90 million on debt for which Elliott paid less than $20 million.[15]
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