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7/21/2026

Icahn to Sell Auto-Service Chain Pep Boys to Mavis for $700 Million

Wall Street Journal (07/21/26) Thomas, Lauren

Carl Icahn’s company, Icahn Enterprises (IEP), has struck a deal to sell auto-service chain Pep Boys to private-equity owned Mavis Tire Express Services, according to people familiar with the matter. Mavis will pay roughly $700 million in cash under the deal, which is expected to be unveiled Tuesday, the people said. A subsidiary of Mavis is expected to take over the business from a subsidiary of Icahn Enterprises, the people said. Icahn Enterprises, known by its ticker IEP, is expected to hold on to some owned real estate, along with the AAMCO Transmissions and Precision Tune Auto Care businesses, the people added. Mavis, based in White Plains, N.Y., offers tire services and general automotive repair across its more than 3,600 owned and franchised shops around the United States and Canada. Its other auto-service center brands include Midas, Tire Kingdom and Tuffy. It is jointly run by brothers David and Stephen Sorbaro. A group of private-equity firms including BayPine and TSG Consumer Partners won an auction in 2021 to acquire Mavis in a deal that valued the auto-service chain at around $6 billion, including debt. Icahn bought Pep Boys in 2016 for around $1 billion after prevailing in a fierce bidding war against Japanese tire maker Bridgestone (TYO: 5108). He had been on the hunt for assets to compliment his existing portfolio of auto-related businesses. The bet proved more complex than anticipated. In 2018, IEP announced it was selling off Federal-Mogul after owning the car-parts maker for roughly a decade. One of IEP’s other auto businesses, Auto Plus, filed for bankruptcy in 2023. Last year, IEP transferred most of the real estate associated with its auto segment to a real-estate division of IEP. IEP is selling Pep Boys for more than the valuation it carried it at, but not much more, the people familiar with the matter said. Pep Boys was founded in Philadelphia in 1921. Today it counts over 750 locations across the United States and Puerto Rico, offering auto repair and tire services that include oil changes and brake maintenance. An acquisition of Pep Boys should help Mavis grow its presence into new and existing markets—particularly across the Western part of the United States where Pep Boys already has a sizable retail footprint.

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7/21/2026

Barington Capital Pushes Chemed for Strategic Review

Investing.com (07/21/26) Juricic, Louis

Barington Capital Group increased pressure on Chemed Corp. (NYSE: CHE) on Tuesday, calling for the holding company to conduct a strategic review and refresh its board of directors. Barington Chairman and Chief Executive Officer James Mitarotonda sent a letter to Chemed’s board stating the company has two outstanding businesses whose value is not being maximized, according to Bloomberg News. Mitarotonda wrote that Chemed has underperformed its peer group and the broader market, while its management and board have responded to challenges with insufficient urgency. Chemed, based in Cincinnati, operates two units: hospice provider Vitas Healthcare and plumbing and drain-cleaning services firm Roto-Rooter. Barington said it has held discussions with Kevin McNamara, Chemed’s Chief Executive Officer, and Michael Witzeman, the company’s chief financial officer. A Chemed representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The investor is urging the board to perform a strategic review and develop plans to improve profitability, including examining whether the current multi-business structure has led to under-investment in Roto-Rooter. Barington is also calling for cost reductions, starting with perks such as the CEO’s personal use of company aircraft, tickets for sporting events and club membership. The investor argues Chemed needs to rebuild its executive compensation program after shareholders voted against an advisory measure on it. Barington said the company also needs to refresh its board and has recommended a new director candidate.

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7/21/2026

Genuine Parts Cuts Full-Year Profit Forecast on Inflation, Weaker Consumer Spending

Reuters (07/21/26) Sarkar, Apratim

Auto parts distributor Genuine Parts (GPC.N) lowered its full-year profit outlook on Tuesday, as rising costs and a tougher consumer environment weighed on its expectations. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have compounded challenges for the automotive sector by pushing up fuel prices and weighing on consumer spending. The company lowered its 2026 profit forecast to a range of $5.90 to $6.40 per share from its earlier $6.10 to $6.60 per share projection. Reaffirmed full-year adjusted profit forecast between $7.50 and $8 per share. 2026 sales growth unchanged at 3% to 5.5%. Second-quarter adjusted profit came in at $2.15 per share, above analysts' average estimate of $2.08 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. Genuine Parts North America Automotive business sales were up 3.8% at $2.5 billion and International Automotive business sales rose 8.2% to $1.6 billion from a year ago. The company's quarterly revenue rose 6% to $6.54 billion, beating analysts' average estimate of $6.43 billion. In February, Genuine Parts unveiled plans to separate its automotive and industrial businesses, contending that the two operations would command greater value as independent companies. "We remain on track to complete our planned separation in the first quarter of 2027," said CEO Will Stengel. The restructuring was backed by Elliott Investment Management, which maintained that the company's automotive and industrial units would be valued more highly as distinct businesses.

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7/20/2026

Align: “Gabia Tender Offer Not an Ordinary Sale... No Harm Should Come to Shareholders”

Asia Business Daily (07/20/26) Minwoo, Lee

Macquarie Asset Management is pursuing the delisting of Gabia (KOSDAQ: 079940) through a public tender offer following the company’s acquisition. Given the unique structure in which the founder's side will reinvest the sale proceeds and conduct joint management with Macquarie, major shareholder Align Partners Asset Management emphasized the need for fair and stringent procedures to ensure general shareholders do not suffer losses. On the 20th, Align Partners announced its position regarding the Gabia tender offer, stating that fair procedures to protect ordinary shareholders' interests and maximize overall shareholder value must be implemented. Align Partners plans to send a public shareholder letter containing these points to the Gabia Board of Directors in the near future. According to the Financial Supervisory Service’s DART system on this day, DCK Investment, a special purpose company (SPC) established by Macquarie Asset Management, will conduct a public tender offer for all outstanding common shares of Gabia, aiming for delisting, until September 17. The tender offer price is set at 48,000 won per share, which is 41.6% higher than the closing price of 33,900 won on July 16, the last trading day before the announcement. The shares targeted for purchase comprise 73.1% of the issued stock, excluding stakes held by the largest shareholder and treasury shares. This transaction consists of a share purchase agreement to acquire stakes from Gabia's co-CEO and largest shareholder Kim Hongguk and others, along with a simultaneous public tender offer to ordinary shareholders. The largest shareholder plans to reinvest the sale proceeds, net of taxes, in order to retain management control alongside Macquarie going forward. Align Partners, holding a 14.3% stake in Gabia, pointed out, “This transaction is, in effect, a going-private deal led by the controlling shareholder and constitutes a case with high risk of structural conflict of interest. More stringent procedures than a typical third-party M&A are required to protect the interests of general shareholders.” In particular, Align criticized the Board for only passively reviewing whether the proposed tender offer price is reasonable. Align stated, “Under the revised Commercial Act, directors are required to fulfill their fiduciary duties to shareholders. The Ministry of Justice's 'Guidelines for Directors' Conduct in Corporate Reorganizations' also instruct directors to comprehensively consider alternatives and pursue the most favorable approach for the company and its shareholders. The Board of Directors must confirm the possibility of a higher price or more favorable terms, ensure that alternatives are not foreclosed, and strive to maximize shareholder interests.” This is the focus of the public shareholder letter that Align will submit to Gabia's Board of Directors. Align is demanding public explanations to all shareholders on the following points: whether the Board is actively seeking alternative potential buyers who may offer better terms; whether the fairness of the tender offer price is being independently verified; whether an independent special committee has been formed and expressed opinions regarding the tender offer; and whether the process for providing information to the buyer and managing conflicts of interest is transparent. In addition, Align called for the prompt implementation of any missing procedures among these requirements. Align has requested that Gabia publicly announce an official position regarding these matters by July 31. If Gabia fails to provide a satisfactory response, Align will actively consider various follow-up actions permitted under the Commercial Act and the Capital Markets Act. Changhwan Lee, CEO of Align Partners, stated, “In transactions with a high risk of structural conflict of interest, only after the Board of Directors has made sufficient efforts can the deal be said to be the best choice for all shareholders. This transaction will serve as an important precedent, demonstrating what role the Board must play to maximize the value of all shareholders in going-private transactions under the Ministry of Justice's guidelines.”

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7/17/2026

Japan LDP Seeks to Rein in ‘Excessive’ Activist Proposals

Bloomberg (07/17/26) Terukina, Akemi

A Japanese ruling party panel is calling for stricter limits on shareholder rights, arguing that existing regulations encourage what it sees as “excessive” activist proposals and the pursuit of short-term profits. The recommendations unveiled by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) project team on Friday would raise the threshold for shareholders to demand a special general meeting from the current 3% of voting rights to at least 5%. They would also limit the power to make proposals to shareholders who hold at least 1% of voting rights, replacing the current requirement of 300 voting rights. In addition, the group calls for “business execution” to be excluded from the scope of matters on which shareholders can propose amendments to a company’s articles of incorporation. The recommendations, which the group aims to enact into law in the fiscal year starting in April 2027, come amid a steady stream of calls to rein in shareholders, including from the trade ministry and the big business lobby, Keidanren. The ideas have sparked criticism from investors, including Oasis Management’s Seth Fischer, who said they could disadvantage small shareholders. Japan is the biggest market for shareholder activism outside the United States, according to research by Bloomberg Intelligence. The LDP panel argues that forcing companies to respond to activists pursuing short-term gains has diverted resources away from growth investment. They say the recommendations are intended to align Japan’s relatively strong shareholder rights with those of other countries. By comparison, shareholders have no statutory right to call a special meeting under the law in Delaware, where most major U.S. firms are incorporated. Among firms that do provide the right, a threshold of 20% is common. Conversely, U.S. law is relatively generous in terms of allowing shareholders to submit proposals. Under Japan's current law, shareholders are allowed to propose amendments to a company's articles of incorporation, including provisions relating to business execution. A ban on such proposals could be difficult to enforce, given that it is not always clear what constitutes a matter of business execution. Lawmakers would need to clearly define what types of proposals management is entitled to reject, said Yutaka Suzuki, chief researcher at Daiwa Institute of Research A proposal requiring a company to withdraw from a particular business would clearly fall within the category of business execution, Suzuki said, but whether proposals for dividends should be treated the same way remains open to debate. Although shareholder proposals to amend articles of incorporation rarely pass, there have been exceptions. At Eiken Chemical’s (TYO: 4549) annual general meeting last year, UK-based Asset Value Investors proposed amending the company’s articles to allow dividends from retained earnings to be determined by shareholder resolution. The proposal was approved with 73% support.

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7/17/2026

GameStop Owns Nearly 10% of eBay, SEC Filing Shows

Reuters (07/17/26) Herbst-Bayliss, Svea

Video game retailer GameStop (GME.N) owns nearly 10% of e-commerce company eBay, the company said in a regulatory filing late on Friday, signaling its intent to push ahead with plans to buy eBay even after its unsolicited offer was rejected. GameStop said it owns 43.4 million outstanding shares of eBay (EBAY.O), or 9.8%, marking a dramatic increase in ownership from early May when GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen told eBay's board chairman it wanted to buy the company for roughly $56 billion. At that time he said GameStop had "accumulated a 5% economic stake" through derivatives and beneficial ownership. Over the last weeks GameStop turned its economic stake into common shares. Last month it bought 3.5 million eBay shares for roughly $381 million and on Friday it settled 39 million eBay shares from put/call pairs, the filing said. An eBay representative was not immediately available for comment. In a second filing also made on Friday, Cohen said "I’m not going to call my shots, but we’re coming for eBay one way or another." That filing transcribed his interview with Bloomberg Television on Thursday. Two months ago when Cohen first proposed buying the company roughly five times the size of his own, the billionaire investor argued a tie-up between GameStop and eBay, a company that he would run, would be a bigger competitor to Amazon (AMZN.O). EBay in May rejected Cohen's cash and stock offer, calling it "neither credible nor attractive." Since then Cohen has said in numerous interviews that he will press ahead with his plans. GameStop shareholders last month approved increasing the company's authorized share count which gives GameStop more flexibility to maneuver. Cohen is also putting $500 million of his own money into the transaction. Wall Street has repeatedly questioned Cohen's planned financing because it relies heavily on a non-binding commitment letter from TD Securities for up to $20 billion in debt, which is contingent on the combined company achieving an investment-grade credit rating. In the Bloomberg interview Cohen said "there has been a complete failure by the media to explain why this transaction makes sense" and added GameStop has a "highly confident" letter from its bankers and "we have a lot of parties that are interested in this transaction." Cohen was also asked by Bloomberg whether he would be ready to raise his offer to buy eBay. "I’m not going to negotiate against myself," he said.

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7/16/2026

Randian Capital Pushes LoanDepot to Consider a Sale

National Mortgage News (07/16/26) Sinnock, Bonnie

A minority shareholder at LoanDepot (NYSE: LDI) has called for the company to rethink its management and consider courting acquirers, citing concerns around a long period in which it has traded just above $1 per share. Randian Capital also specifically recommended a new approach to the company's mortgage servicing rights portfolio, which the company reported had an unpaid principal balance of more than $120 billion in the first quarter. That portfolio "may command a premium value in a strategic transaction," Randian suggested in a letter to LoanDepot's board while pointing to Rocket Mortgage's acquisition of Mr. Cooper last year as a sign of strong market interest in servicing. Randian's letter asks the board to reconsider LoanDepot's current strategies and top executive Anthony Hsieh's leadership. "While the mortgage industry has faced significant macroeconomic headwinds, those factors alone do not explain LoanDepot's prolonged underperformance," the investor wrote. "Many competitors have adapted their cost structures and strategic positioning. LoanDepot has yet to demonstrate a sustainable path." Randian Capital reports it has exposure to over 250,000 shares of LoanDepot. Hsieh holds far more at over 100 million shares, according to a Stock Titan report from earlier this year. A LoanDepot spokesperson declined to comment on the letter. LoanDepot's approach to its servicing portfolio, which the company has gradually grown from $117 billion in UPB during last year's first quarter, has been to use it for the recapture and retention of lending customers. "We have focused on fully leveraging our unique assets and strategy, including one of the most differentiated customer acquisition and retention business models in the marketplace," Hsieh said during the company's first-quarter earnings call. LoanDepot has reported relatively high recapture and retention rates of 73% and 75%, representing an uptrend from a year ago, when the company's respective numbers were 65% and 67%. (The company calculates consumer-direct recapture based on organic refinances of loans on the same property with full repayment in situations where the company is consistently the lender, divided by the servicing portfolio's UPB. Due to a lag in when external data is available the latest numbers were considered current as of April 20. The other metric is calculated based on the origination amount sold servicing retained during a quarter divided by the total sold volume.) In addition to learning on servicing for customer recapture and retention, company also plans to use its re-entry into wholesale, the hiring of 100 additional loan officers, and operational efficiencies obtained through automation to increase profit and recover from multiple quarters in the red. "We are now three quarters into the rebuild of our company and I believe that all of our hard work will soon be reflected in our financial performance," Hsieh said during the company's earnings call. "We spent the most recent quarter focused on a series of long-term growth initiatives that we expect will accelerate our momentum in coming months." Some other large nonbank mortgage companies also have shares trading in the single digits, including United Wholesale Mortgage (NYSE: UWMC), Fannie Mae (OTCMKTS: FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTCMKTS: FMCC), the last two of which are government-sponsored enterprises held in conservatorship. Prolonged trading below $1 per share can jeopardize a company's listing on the New York Stock Exchange but generally the aforementioned stocks have been above that benchmark. Relatively lower stock prices can generate analyst and investor interest if there's confidence that a company's shares have upside potential. On a scale on which 1 is a buy and 5 is a sell, S&P Capital IQ's analyst consensus during midday trading was that LoanDepot's stock was at 3.75. There have been multiple servicing-related acquisitions due in part to market conditions that have increased recapture's importance, notably a recent bidding war between UWM and retail home mortgage giant CrossCountry over Roundpoint Mortgage Servicing's owner, Two Harbors. Shareholders voted for CrossCountry to buy Two Harbors.

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7/16/2026

Starbucks Defeats Shareholder Lawsuit Over US, China Sales Declines

Reuters (07/16/26) Stempel, Jonathan

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit accusing Starbucks (SBUX.O) of defrauding shareholders by intentionally concealing declining sales in the United States and China, its largest markets. U.S. District Judge John Chun in Seattle said Starbucks' "innocent explanation" that former Chief Executive Laxman Narasimhan genuinely believed during a January 2024 analyst call that he was assessing sales trends in the just-completed quarter was "at least as compelling" as shareholders' claim that he was assessing current sales trends. Chun ruled on Wednesday, after having allowed the case to proceed last November. Lawyers for the shareholders, who are led by three pension plans in New York, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday. The lawsuit followed a 16% decline in Starbucks' share price on May 1, 2024, one day after Starbucks lowered its annual sales forecast and said same-store sales fell 4.4% in its latest quarter. Those sales reflected declines of 3% in the United States and 11% in China. Brian Niccol, who succeeded Narasimhan as chief executive, has pursued a "Back to Starbucks" turnaround plan focused on simplified menus, shorter wait times, upgraded stores, improved in-store technology, and closures of poorly performing stores.

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7/14/2026

CCC Intelligent Solutions Stock Rises Following Reports of Elliott Investment Management Stake

TIKR (07/14/26) Raghunath, Aditya

CCC Intelligent Solutions (NASDAQ: CCC) stock jumped over 10% after Bloomberg reported that Elliott Management has built a large stake in the company. Notably, Elliott took the position before CCC even began exploring a sale, which adds an extra layer of intrigue to the timing. Elliott’s involvement is reportedly being led by its private equity arm, Evergreen Coast Capital, rather than its more typical public activist playbook. That distinction matters. It suggests Elliott may be angling for a direct buyout rather than pushing for boardroom changes from the outside. Evergreen has bought software companies before, including Gigamon for $1.6 billion in 2017 and LogMeIn for $4.3 billion in 2019, so this wouldn’t be new territory. The timing lines up with something else. CCC has hired Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) to run a formal sale process and has already reached out to potential buyers. That combination, an activist stake plus an active sale process, is exactly the kind of setup that tends to draw serious buyer interest. CCC’s business model helps explain the appeal. The company sells cloud-based, AI-powered software that connects insurers, repair shops, parts suppliers, and automakers. Once a customer is plugged in, switching platforms is disruptive and costly, which creates sticky, subscription-like revenue. That’s the kind of predictable cash flow private equity firms love. CCC Intelligent Solutions stock had fallen significantly before this rally, with market cap dropping about 35% over the past year even as the underlying business continued to perform. Q1 2026 revenue grew 12% year over year to $281.3 million. Adjusted EBITDA jumped 21.3% to $120.2 million. That’s a case of a stock price falling faster than the fundamentals, exactly the kind of gap that draws in activist and private equity buyers. Not everything points to a clean outcome. CCC explored a sale back in 2023, and nothing came of it, so investors know a formal process doesn’t guarantee a deal. Slowing revenue growth and softer industry claims volumes remain real challenges. Still, with earnings due July 30, investors will get a fresh look at whether the fundamentals support the deal speculation building around CCC Intelligent Solutions stock.

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