Billionaire Paul Singer has stepped up his activist efforts concerning Lifelock Inc. (NYSE:LOCK), as disclosed in a recently amended filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Since the end of June, his fund Elliott Management has acquired 600,000 shares of the company, lifting its tally to 7.75 million shares, which account for 8.4% of the company’s outstanding stock. The fund has economic exposure to an additional 2.5% of Lifelock’s common stock through various derivative contracts.
Elliott Management disclosed its activist stake in Lifelock Inc. (NYSE:LOCK), a provider of identity theft protection services, in June and immediately engaged in talks with the company’s management regarding ways to increase shareholder value. Not long after, the company hired investment banking advisory firm Evercore Partners Inc. (NYSE:EVR), fueling speculation about a potential sale.
Lifelock had a tough second quarter, having registered a $7.6 million loss, though when adjusted for stock option expense and amortization costs, the company netted a profit of $0.07 per share, ahead of analysts’ projections of $0.04 per share. Revenue came in at $164.4 million, up by 13.4% year-over-year.
Hedge fund sentiment towards Lifelock Inc. (NYSE:LOCK) plummeted during the first quarter, as the number of long positions among the funds we follow dropped to 16 at the end of March, from 31 registered three months earlier. Okumus Fund Management, run by Ahmet Okumus, held the largest position among the funds in our database on March 31, consisting of 9.18 million shares, however it cut its position by 42% during the second quarter, to 5.36 million shares. Matthew Knauer and Mina Faltas’ Nokota Management opened a 3.28 million-share position in the stock during the second quarter.
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You can access the original SEC filing by clicking here.
Ownership Summary Table
| Name | Sole Voting Power | Shared Voting Power | Sole Dispositive Power | Shared Dispositive Power | Aggregate Amount Owned Power | Percent of Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elliott Associates | 2,480,000 | 0 | 2,480,000 | 0 | 2,480,000 | 2.7% |
| Elliott International | 0 | 5,270,000 | 0 | 5,270,000 | 5,270,000 | 5.7% |
| Elliott International Capital Advisors Inc | 0 | 5,270,000 | 0 | 5,270,000 | 5,270,000 | 5.7% |
