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Why do companies become hedge fund targets? Evidence from shareholder activism in Germany

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  • Bessler, Wolfgang
  • Vendrasco, Marco

Abstract

Regulatory changes in Germany since the beginning of the new millennium shifted corporate control activities from banks to capital markets. Hedge funds exploited these governance changes by acquiring equity stakes in weakly governed firms, which subsequently outperformed, except during the global financial crisis. For 653 shareholder activism events over the period 2000–2020, we observe that hedge funds are more likely to target smaller firms with less ownership concentration, with higher financial visibility, higher sales growth, higher profitability, lower leverage, greater diversification and higher institutional ownership. Although hedge funds became less aggressive, the optimal strategy protecting management against activism is to create shareholder value.

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  • Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Why do companies become hedge fund targets? Evidence from shareholder activism in Germany," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 47(PB).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:47:y:2022:i:pb:s154461232200068x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2022.102748
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    1. Bessler, Wolfgang & Vendrasco, Marco, 2022. "Corporate control and shareholder activism in Germany: An empirical analysis of hedge fund strategies," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate governance; Shareholder activism; Hedge funds;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G14 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Information and Market Efficiency; Event Studies; Insider Trading
    • G23 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Non-bank Financial Institutions; Financial Instruments; Institutional Investors
    • G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
    • K22 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Business and Securities Law

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