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September 2015 (Revised February 2016)
Case

Novell (A): When an Activist Hedge Fund Came Calling on the Board

By: Richard L. Nolan

No corporation and its board of directors is immune to a disruptive shareholder activist attack. The Novell (A) and (B) cases take students through a shareholder activist attack and its aftermath—a saga that spanned 5 years. The cases outline the activist playbook in... View Details

Keywords: Investment Activism

01 Oct 2008
Working Paper Summaries

Responding to Public and Private Politics: Corporate Disclosure of Climate Change Strategies

Keywords: by Erin M. Reid & Michael W. Toffel

24 Apr 2014
HBS Seminar

Rebecca Henderson, Harvard Business School

October 2019 (Revised February 2025)
Case

A Conversation with Ellen J. Kullman, Chairman & CEO of DuPont, 2009-2015

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

Ellen J. Kullman, the retired Chairman and CEO of DuPont, describes how she guided the storied science and technology company through a contentious proxy battle with activist investor Trian Partners, which acquired DuPont shares in 2013 and sought to break up the... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Capital Structure; Corporate Accountability; Corporate Governance; Institutional Investing; Leadership; Leadership Style; Management; Transformation; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Chemical Industry; United States

Article

Short-Termism and Capital Flows

By: Jesse M. Fried and Charles C.Y. Wang

During 2007–2016, S&P 500 firms distributed to shareholders $7 trillion via buybacks and dividends, over 96% of their aggregate net income, prompting claims that "short-termism" is impairing firms' ability to invest and innovate. We show that, when taking into account... View Details

Keywords: Short-termism; Quarterly Capitalism; Share Buybacks; Open Market Repurchases; Dividends; Equity Issuances; Seasoned Equity Offerings; Equity Compensastion; Acquisitions; Payout Policy; Capital Flows; Capital Distribution; Working Capital; Business and Shareholder Relations; Acquisition

18 May 2018
News

Share buybacks are soaring - is this a sign of market turmoil ahead?

August 1988 (Revised July 1996)
Case

Colt Industries

Colt Industries is a conglomerate that is considering undertaking a leveraged recapitalization. The deal would involve a large one-time dividend to stockholders, which would be financed by over $1 billion in new debt. Unlike in an leveraged buyout, however, public... View Details

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Equity; Economic Growth; Ownership Stake; Stocks; Borrowing and Debt; Employee Stock Ownership Plan; Financial Strategy

Research Summary

The Corporate Governance Role of Taxes

Dyck introduces evidence that private benefits of control are higher in countries with poor tax enforcement and in ongoing work explores further this correlation using both theory and empirical work from the United States and Russia. This work illustrates that the... View Details

July 1982 (Revised December 1984)
Case

Esmark, Inc. (A)

By: William E. Fruhan Jr.

Involves the management of a firm with a market value of a going concern that is less than its breakup value. How does management maximize value for shareholders in this environment? View Details

Keywords: Finance; Markets; Business and Shareholder Relations; Value; Food and Beverage Industry

01 Aug 2018
News

Are share buybacks 'plundering company resources'?

September 2018
Case

Advent International: Kroton Investment

By: Victoria Ivashina, Ruth Kostas and Priscilla Zogbi

Keywords: Private Equity; Acquisition; IPO; Valuation; Education; Distance Learning; Turnaround; Growth; Exit; PE; Buyer; Middle-class; Low Income; K-12; Entrepreneur; Family Business; University; College; Consolidation; Fragmentation; Penetration; Value; Shares; Control; Negotiation; Equity; Transaction; Board; Majority; Minority; Post-secondary; Leverage; Campus; Deal; Shareholder; Tag Along; Brazil; Latin America

March 2006 (Revised May 2010)
Case

Banco Hipotecario S.A.

By: Daniel Baird Bergstresser, Arthur I Segel and Alexandra de Royere

In 2003, the chairwoman and controlling shareholder of Argentina's leading residential mortgage lender are considering how to bring the bank's restructuring to a successful conclusion as the country's economy continues to suffer from the impact of the 2001-2002... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Currency; Banks and Banking; Mortgages; Crisis Management; Competition; Argentina

10 Feb 2015
News

Firms need a formal code of conduct

01 Jun 2010
News

Do inefficient stock markets drive bad governance?

October 2021
Supplement

Engine No. 1: An Activist Hedge Fund Pursues Stakeholder Capitalism (B)

By: Mark Kramer

Engine Number 1's proxy fight succeeded in part because Exxon shareholders had lost money in the preceding years and because climate change was a high-profile issue. The B case raises the question of whether Engine No. 1's next target should be Facebook, where social... View Details

Keywords: Proxy Fight; Hedge Fund Activism; Social Impact; Business and Shareholder Relations; Climate Change; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Goals and Objectives

December 2007
Case

Ruling the Modern Corporation: The Debate over Limited Liability in Massachusetts

By: David A. Moss and Eugene Kintgen

In 1830, Governor Levi Lincoln, Jr. urged the Massachusetts state legislature to introduce a limited liability regime for manufacturing corporations similar to that adopted in neighboring states. At least since 1809, shareholders in the state's manufacturing... View Details

Keywords: Capital; Debt Securities; Legal Liability; Production; Business and Shareholder Relations; Manufacturing Industry; Massachusetts

February 2009 (Revised March 2009)
Supplement

AFSCME vs. Mozilo...and "Say on Pay" for All! (B)

By: Fabrizio Ferri and James Weber

Union seeks to protect its pension funds through shareholder activism focused on corporate governance and executive compensation. The (B) case updates the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Executive Compensation; Labor Unions; Corporate Governance