The activist fund Elliott Management wrote a letter to Crown Castle on Thursday requesting a new CEO as part of a push for “improved governance and fiber-strategy reforms” at the mobile tower company. On the same day, Crown Castle announced that CEO Jay Brown is departing.
Anthony Melone, a board member of Crown Castle, will temporarily take over for Brown, the firm announced in a release. A permanent successor is being sought for by the board.
Elliott’s campaign, which called for “fundamental leadership change” to address “long-term underperformance,” got underway in late November. Though the iShares Global REIT ETF has increased by nearly 1%, shares of real estate investment trust Crown Castle have dropped 13% this year.
Elliott announced in a release announcing the most recent campaign that it had previously targeted Crown Castle in 2020 and that the business had “disregarded” the firm’s advice in favour of a “value-destructive strategy.”
Elliott is hoping to reorganise the C-suite and assess Crown Castle’s fibre business, possibly even selling it. He is also hoping to put new bylaws into place.
Crown Castle prides itself on being one of the nation’s leading providers of communications infrastructure. Over 40,000 rooftop installations and cell towers are under the company’s control. Since its 2021 peak, its stock has decreased by about 40%.
Elliott is in charge of a $2 billion portion of Crown Castle. The Paul Singer-founded activist fund has previously worked on campaigns at Salesforce and Twitter, among other corporations. Elliott increased his ownership of Phillips 66 by $1 billion this year, and he is vying for up to two board seats at the petroleum refining business.
Source (CNBC)