Interest from other notable investors in E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (NYSE:DD) was somewhat limited in the first quarter of 2013. Billionaire Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors increased its stake in the company to about 950,000 shares (see Cohen’s stock picks). The only other filer we track which owned more than $30 million worth of the stock at that time was Levin Capital Strategies, which is managed by John Levin (research more stocks Levin owned).
The most obvious activist move that Peltz could be pushing for is a breakup of E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (NYSE:DD). For example, the company’s Agriculture segment- which contributed 45% of revenue and 66% of segment operating income in Q1 2013- could be separated from the lower-margin, lower-growth remainder of the company. Both volume and price in agriculture have been growing, resulting in double-digit sales growth in Q1 relative to a year ago. If this unit were independently traded it might well be compared to Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON), whose trailing P/E is 22 even though its recent reports show little change in revenue or earnings compared to a year ago. The remainder of the company could focus on cash generation, with management potentially being able to improve the more industrial related operations. Of course, it’s also possible that this is merely a value related move and that Peltz believes the market does not fully appreciate the strength of the agricultural business or other E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (NYSE:DD) assets; he could also want DuPont to engage in an acquisition strategy. In addition, any activist plans Trian may have would likely need to be accepted by management.