• Nomination deadline at Coterra set for today
• UBS makes early 13F filing
• GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen looks for major acquisition

Must reads

30 January: Things appear to be heating up between Devon Energy and Coterra Energy – potentially spurred by today’s looming board nomination deadline.

For some quick background, Kimmeridge Energy Management released a letter last year calling for Coterra to shed its non-Permian assets. An early HSR termination in December for a Kimmeridge investment in Devon Energy – a logical deal partner for Coterra – added an interesting new twist to the situation.

The board nomination window at Coterra opened at the end of 2025 and not long after came a report that Coterra was in early-stage merger talks with Devon. Given how things had played out, we speculated that the two were likely heading for a deal, which Kimmeridge was happy to help with.

Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that the two companies are in advanced merger talks and could announce a deal within days, though did note talks could collapse.

The timing is interesting given today is the deadline to nominate directors to the board of Coterra. Will news that the company is on the cusp of a deal be enough for Kimmeridge or will the fund look to add its own board candidates to oversee things? Stay tuned.

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30 January: An earlier than usual 13F filing out of UBS yesterday has given us a few names to sharpen focus on as proxy season kicks off.

UBS bought over 836,000 shares of retail supply chain software company SPS Commerce in 4Q25. That brings the current position to 1.29m shares or triple the 458,000 shares held the prior quarter – itself a significant boost from the 50,000 shares held in 2Q25.

The buying may be tied to Anson Funds, which is pressing the company for cost-cutting and leadership changes, as well as a potential sale. With less than two weeks to go until the director nomination deadline, we may soon hear of some action.

UBS also picked up a large number of shares in Graphic Packaging. The bank bought 4.99m shares in the quarter, continuing a strong appetite for shares recently.

Two years ago, UBS held just 250,000 shares and kept that position below 600,000 in the following four quarters. Things ramped up in 4Q24 with a 2.63m share purchase, and another 3.8m shares the following quarter. However, UBS sold 70% of the position in 2Q25.

The bank is now rebuilding that stake, doubling its 2m share position in 3Q25.

The company is currently under fire from Eminence Capital for its recent CEO change. The activist would like to see Graphic Packaging reinstate former CEO Mike Doss. In a December letter, Eminence said it owned 4.2% of shares. This compares to the 2.59% disclosed in its 3Q25 13F filing.

Presumably, the fund has continued adding to that stake since the end of September. Given UBS has bought about 2.3% of Graphic Packaging over the past two quarters, we can’t help but wonder if the UBS activity is related to another activist. The board nomination window is currently open, so we could soon find out.

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30 January: GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen wants to turn the meme-stock and video-game retailer into a USD 100bn company – a far cry from the USD 10bn market cap it ended with yesterday – and plans to do so through the major acquisition of a publicly traded company, according to an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

The billionaire’s recent compensation package hinges on it, too. GameStop announced a new long-term performance award for its chief executive earlier this year, with over 171 million shares up for grabs if Gamestop’s market cap reaches the USD 100bn mark. GameStop shareholders will have a say on that comp at the upcoming AGM expected in March or April.

So, the USD 100bn question is what will Cohen buy? The report states that he has narrowed down his sights to a “handful” of companies, likely in the consumer or retail industry. He noted that there are a lot of diamonds in the rough with “sleepy management teams,” and that any deal will be “big” and either “genius” or “foolish.”

That whittles the list down to large takeovers with the potential to be construed as ill-advised. The obvious fit for a video-game retailer would be something synergistic in the same field.  Here, Dave & Buster’s has been linked as an obvious name and with shares down over 30% this year that certainly could be the kind of performance seen as sleepy.  Still, with a market cap of less than USD 1bn, we’re not sure that fits the “big” criteria, nor does an arcade-centered business in the year 2026 seem audacious enough for Cohen’s plans.

A major game developer is another possibility, providing vertical integration from publisher to retail outlet.  But, given the recent flurry of deals in that space, there aren’t many publicly traded pieces left on the board besides another less than USD 1bn market cap company, Paris-based Ubisoft.

Still, with roughly USD 9bn at his disposal, Cohen certainly has the ability to go big and GameStop is worth keeping an eye on to see where he believes there’s USD 100bn potential.

Live activist situations

Activist announcements

29 January: Oramed Pharmaceuticals disclosed in a 13D filing a 5% stake in Nano Dimension. Oramed said that it intended to recommend changes to the composition of the board, among other topics.

Company announcements

30 January: Herc Holdings disclosed that John Engquist intended not to stand for reelection to the board of directors at the 2026 AGM. Herc said that Engquist’s decision not to stand for reelection was not due to any disagreement with the company on any matter relating to its operations, policies or practices.

GAMCO Investors owns a 3.3% stake in Herc, excluding other affiliates.

30 January: Illumina announced that it has completed its acquisition of SomaLogic, a leader in data-driven proteomics technology. Illumina said that it acquired SomaLogic and other specified assets from Standard BioTools for USD 350m, subject to customary adjustments, in cash paid at closing, plus up to USD 75m in near-term performance-based milestones and performance-based royalties.

Corvex Management holds a 2.51% stake in Illumina.

30 January: First Hawaiian announced that its board of directors adopted a stock repurchase program for up to USD 250m of its outstanding common stock and declared a quarterly cash dividend of USD 0.26 per share. The company also reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2025.

California Public Employees’ Retirement System holds a 0.18% stake in First Hawaiian.

Press clippings

29 January: Groups representing documentary filmmakers, independent theaters and nonprofits are urging state attorneys general to halt Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery’s studio and streaming businesses, according to a newswire report. Bloomberg, citing a letter dated 22 January and signed by groups including the International Documentary Association, the American Economic Liberties Project and Art House Convergence, said the deal raises ‘serious antitrust concerns’ against a backdrop of media consolidation that is hurting creators, workers, consumers and the public at large.

The Financial Times reported on 8 January that WBD shareholder Pentwater Capital Management urged the board to engage with Paramount Skydance. Sessa Capital owns a 2.04% stake in WBD, and California Public Employees Retirement System holds less than 0.1% stake in Netflix.