NEW YORK – Investment firm Starboard Value LP, known for its involvement in publicly traded companies, recently presented its strategies for enhancing shareholder value at the 2024 Active-Passive Investor Summit. The firm’s CEO and Chief Investment Officer, Jeffrey Smith, showcased potential value creation opportunities at Kenvue Inc . (NYSE: NYSE:), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: NYSE:), and Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM).
Starboard Value, which operates with a fundamental approach to investing, focuses on undervalued companies and works closely with their management and boards to improve performance and unlock shareholder value. The details of the firm’s presentations for each company highlighted at the summit are available on their website.
During the summit, Smith discussed the specific aspects of each company that Starboard believes could be optimized to enhance their market value and performance. While the exact details of the strategies were not disclosed in the press release, such presentations typically include proposals for operational improvements, financial restructuring, or strategic shifts.
The investment adviser has a history of engaging with companies in which it invests, often taking an activist role to advocate for changes it believes will increase shareholder returns. This approach has placed Starboard in the spotlight as a significant player in the field of activist investing.
The presentation at the summit reflects Starboard’s ongoing commitment to active investment and its belief in the potential for substantial returns through targeted interventions in company operations and strategy.
Starboard’s involvement with companies like Kenvue, Pfizer, and Salesforce indicates a continuing trend of activist investors seeking to influence the direction of major corporations. As the firm identifies opportunities to unlock value, the broader market watches to see how these strategies will unfold and what impact they will have on the companies and their shareholders.
The information presented is based on a press release statement from Starboard Value LP.
In other recent news, Salesforce.com Inc (NYSE:) reported strong second-quarter earnings, with earnings per share of $2.56, an 8% increase in sales, and a 9% rise in subscription and support revenues. The company also acquired Zoomin and Own Company for $1.9 billion in cash. Analyst firms Piper Sandler and Wolfe Research have maintained an Overweight and Outperform rating respectively, emphasizing Salesforce’s potential for margin expansion and free cash flow growth. However, Erste Group and TD Cowen have downgraded the stock to Hold due to projected slower growth. Salesforce has also launched Agentforce, an AI-driven suite of autonomous bots, and reported a 130% year-over-year growth in its paid customer base. The company has formed a partnership with IBM (NYSE:) to integrate advanced AI capabilities into its platform. These are recent developments that highlight Salesforce’s ongoing efforts to remain at the forefront of the customer relationship management industry.
InvestingPro Insights
Focusing on Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), one of the companies highlighted in Starboard Value’s presentation, InvestingPro data provides additional context to the investment thesis. Salesforce boasts a market capitalization of $276.33 billion, underlining its significant presence in the software industry.
An InvestingPro Tip notes that Salesforce has “impressive gross profit margins,” which is corroborated by the data showing a gross profit margin of 76.35% for the last twelve months as of Q2 2025. This high margin suggests strong pricing power and efficient cost management, potentially supporting Starboard’s view on value creation opportunities.
Another relevant InvestingPro Tip indicates that Salesforce is “trading at a low P/E ratio relative to near-term earnings growth.” With a PEG ratio of 0.19 for the last twelve months as of Q2 2025, this metric supports the notion that the stock may be undervalued relative to its growth prospects, aligning with Starboard’s focus on undervalued companies.
Salesforce’s revenue growth of 10.26% over the last twelve months as of Q2 2025 demonstrates the company’s continued expansion, which could be a focal point for Starboard’s strategies to enhance shareholder value.
For investors interested in a deeper analysis, InvestingPro offers 13 additional tips for Salesforce, providing a comprehensive view of the company’s financial health and market position.
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