• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Exclusive

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

FinanceSalesforce

Does Salesforce Need A Hedge Fund Activist to Shake Up the Stock?

By
Jen Wieczner
Jen Wieczner
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jen Wieczner
Jen Wieczner
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 15, 2017, 5:16 PM ET

Salesforce may be ripe for a shakeup.

The maker of business software just received some new investors, including three activist hedge funds. Corvex Management, a hedge fund founded by Carl Icahn’s former right hand Keith Meister; Barry Rosenstein’s Jana Partners; and newer activist fund Sachem Head all bought Salesforce stock at the end of 2016, according to disclosures filed Tuesday.

The hedge funds’ stakes are small compared to typical activist positions, adding up to about 1.3% of Salesforce (CRM) shares combined. The total stake is worth $716 million. Jana Partners, for example, bought nearly 5% of Time Inc. (TIME) (the parent company of Fortune) last year, and has reportedly put pressure on the publishing company to restructure or sell.

It’s unclear whether the activist investors plan to push for major changes at Salesforce, though a few hedge funds have successfully won concessions from their target companies even while owning relatively few shares. Salesforce stock rose more than 1% Wednesday following the disclosures.

While Salesforce has long enjoyed the status of a Wall Street darling—its founder, billionaire Marc Benioff, remains its CEO—its shareholders have reason to be impatient. Although Salesforce has managed to grow sales at a brisk clip of roughly 25% annually, the last time it reported a yearly profit was 2011. The company also rattled investors late last summer when it forecasted lower-than-expected earnings amid signs of a business slowdown.

And last year wasn’t a good one for Salesforce in the market. Its shares dropped almost 13%, far worse than the performance of the S&P 500, which was up nearly 10%, as well as its peers. Shares of Oracle (ORCL), for example, gained more than 5%, while Microsoft (MSFT), another rival in the cloud software business, rose 12% for the year.

Still, Salesforce has bounced back significantly in 2017 so far, up 19% this year alone, and it’s possible that the hedge funds will take their profits and leave without changing a thing at the company. That’s what Corvex did with Hain Celestial (HAIN), whose stock price rose 11% during the final quarter of 2016. The hedge fund sold out of it by the end of the year after first buying the stock just the quarter before.

The same is true of Jana’s Rosenstein and Twitter (TWTR). Rosenstein had raised hopes that he would do something to turn around the social media platform after he revealed a stake in the company last fall, sending Twitter stock up 2%. But the activist has already cashed out of the social media company, according to the new filings.

Meanwhile Sachem Head, started by a protege of Pershing Square activist hedge fund manger Bill Ackman, is just wrapping up a winning campaign at Autodesk (ADSK), currently the firm’s top holding with nearly 6% of the tech company’s shares. Accumulating a position anywhere near that big at Salesforce would be much more expensive. A 5% stake in the company would currently cost more than $2 billion. But if the hedge funds were to combine forces in pursuit of the same goals, an activist campaign isn’t out of the question.

About the Author
By Jen Wieczner
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

College graduates sitting at commencement yell.
AIEducation
College students are booing commencement speakers celebrating AI, but the wave of hate hasn’t stopped them from using it to cheat on their exams
By Sasha RogelbergMay 19, 2026
55 minutes ago
Environmental advocates and progressive lawmakers hold a rally in support of legislation that would put a moratorium on new data centers in the state on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y.
AIData centers
Americans’ AI hate wave might just be gathering steam: Data centers could hike power costs in some states over 50% by 2030
By Tristan BoveMay 19, 2026
2 hours ago
Mortgage rates today, May 19, 2026
Personal Financemortgages
Mortgage rates today, May 19, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 19, 2026
2 hours ago
Current refi mortgage rates report for May 19, 2026
Personal Financemortgage rates
Current refi mortgage rates report for May 19, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 19, 2026
2 hours ago
Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 19, 2026
Personal FinanceReal Estate
Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 19, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 19, 2026
2 hours ago
How Coach became Gen Z’s favorite affordable luxury handbag brand
RetailFortune 500
How Coach became Gen Z’s favorite affordable luxury handbag brand
By Phil WahbaMay 19, 2026
2 hours ago

Most Popular

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
7 days ago
While Trump insisted the Iran war would end ‘soon,’ an account in his name was buying millions in oil, defense and gold
Economy
While Trump insisted the Iran war would end ‘soon,’ an account in his name was buying millions in oil, defense and gold
By Eva RoytburgMay 18, 2026
14 hours ago
Current price of oil as of May 18, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 18, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 18, 2026
20 hours ago
EXCLUSIVE: An hour in the Oval Office with the CEO-in-Chief, President Trump
Politics
EXCLUSIVE: An hour in the Oval Office with the CEO-in-Chief, President Trump
By Alyson ShontellMay 18, 2026
1 day ago
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
AI
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
3 days ago
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
Travel & Leisure
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
By Rio Yamat and The Associated PressMay 18, 2026
20 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.