Corvex founder Meister sees big upside for stocks already targeted by others

Fortrea Holdings

22/10/2024 22:28

By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
       NEW YORK, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Activist investor Keith
Meister is not embarrassed about lagging behind other corporate
agitators, saying his rivals' work has led him to buy companies
such as Illumina  ILMN.O , Dollar Tree  DLTR.O  and Fortrea
 FTRE.O  where he argues the stocks are due for big gains.
    "They have already done the work and we think they are
credible," said Meister, founder of Corvex Management, referring
to the work of his former boss, Carl Icahn, Paul Hilal who runs
Mantle Ridge, and Jeff Smith who runs Starboard Value. 
    Following other activists into a stock, he said at the 13D
Monitor Active-Passive Investor Summit in New York on Tuesday,
can be a productive strategy. 
    Icahn ran a proxy fight at gene-sequencing company Illumina
in 2023, won a board seat and soon after saw a new chief
executive arrive.
    Hilal campaigned for change at retailer Dollar Tree and
brought in a new CEO from rival Dollar General  DG.N  where the
executive had already overseen improvements.
    Smith nudged contract research organization Fortrea Holdings
to make changes. 
    Meister said these firms have done considerable research and
made sensible suggestions that kick-started change. But
improvements take time and he said he was able to buy into these
names at opportune times.
    Meister sees room for Illumina's stock price, which has
already gained 24% in the last 52 weeks, to gain 50% more.
Similarly, he said Dollar Tree's stock price could rise 50%,
having dropped 39% in the last 52 weeks. Fortrea's stock price
has dropped 36% in the last 52 weeks and Meister said he thinks
the stock can surge as much as 42%.
        

 (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Rod Nickel)
 ((svea.herbst@thomsonreuters.com; +617 233 2138; Reuters
Messaging: svea.herbst.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))