Technology
Tuesday, January 30th, 2024 3:32 pm EDT
Key Points
- Trimble, an industrial technology company, has announced an $800 million share buyback program and the addition of two directors, Ron Nersesian and Kara Sprague, to its board. The move follows activist investor Jana Partners’ disclosure of a stake in the company a few weeks ago.
- Ron Nersesian, the chairman and former CEO of Keysight, and Kara Sprague, an executive vice president at F5 (Nginx-owner), are set to join Trimble’s board in February, contributing their expertise to the company.
- Jana Partners, which revealed its stake in Trimble at Bloomberg’s Activism Forum in December, expressed satisfaction with the expanded share buyback plan and the new board additions. The activist investor aims to encourage Trimble to improve margins, focus on organic growth, and suggests that industrial companies seeking recurring revenue through software or technology might consider acquiring Trimble. Trimble’s stock has risen more than 7% since Jana first disclosed its stake.
Industrial technology company Trimble has announced a $800 million share buyback program and the addition of two directors to its board, following the disclosure of a stake by activist investor Jana Partners a few weeks ago. The new directors, Ron Nersesian and Kara Sprague, will join the board in February. Nersesian, the chairman and former CEO of Keysight, and Sprague, an executive vice president at F5 (Nginx-owner), bring their expertise to Trimble. Jana Partners, which revealed its stake in Trimble at Bloomberg’s Activism Forum in December, expressed satisfaction with the expanded share buyback plan and the new board additions. Kevin Galligan from Jana stated that the firm looks forward to supporting Trimble in executing its strategy to compound value. Since Jana disclosed its stake, Trimble’s stock has risen more than 7%. Jana Partners has a track record of advocating for improvements in companies it invests in, previously disclosing positions in various firms, including Fidelity National Information Services, Macy’s, New Relic, Qualcomm, and Zendesk. The activist investor aims to encourage Trimble to enhance margins and focus on organic growth, suggesting that industrial companies seeking recurring revenue through software or technology might consider acquiring Trimble. The shares of Trimble rose up to 1.5% following the announcement. Jana Partners did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for additional comment.
For the full original article on CNBC, please click here: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/30/trimble-announces-share-buyback-two-new-directors-after-jana-stake.html
