Salesforce logo sign on Salesforce tower building exterior, Manhattan, New York. (Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Multiple activist investors have taken stakes in Salesforce, according to reports from several outlets. The investments have spurred speculation that the tech firm could soon face additional pressure to increase margins and trim payrolls.
Elliott Investment Management has bought a multi-billion-dollar position in Salesforce, per the Wall Street Journal, and Inclusive Capital has also taken a stake, per CNBC.
"We look forward to working constructively with Salesforce to realize the value befitting a company of its stature," tweeted Jesse Cohn, managing partner at Elliott.
Activist investors have taken aim at Big Tech before, sometimes with the goal of overhauling operations or replacing well-established leaders.
Cohn specifically has some experience serving on the boards of tech companies, including eBay, Twitter, and Citrix.
Salesforce is already trying to streamline its operations after growing too quickly earlier in the pandemic. Earlier this month, the company announced plans to lay off 10 percent of its workforce, or about 700 employees, and reduce its office footprint.
Since then, several other tech giants have made similar cuts, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google parent Alphabet.
Shares of Salesforce were up around 3 percent following the news reports.
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell sharply last week, a sign that U.S. job market remains resilient despite higher interest rates.
The ousted leader of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is returning to the company that fired him late last week, culminating a days-long power struggle that shocked the tech industry and brought attention to the conflicts around how to safely build artificial intelligence.
New Jersey will prohibit the sale of new gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035 as part of an effort to improve air quality and reduce planet-warming pollutants, officials announced Tuesday.
The founder of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony charge that he failed to take steps to prevent money laundering as the company agreed to pay more than $4 billion following an investigation by the U.S. government.
More than 100 handguns were stolen from a store in southwestern Michigan after the manager was held at gunpoint outside his home and forced to reveal how to turn off the alarm, authorities said Tuesday.