13D Filing: Cevian Capital II GP Ltd and Ericsson L M Telephone Co (ERIC)

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
Cevian Capital II GP Limited 167,761,137 0 167,761,137 0 167,761,137 5.57%

Page 1 of 9 – SEC Filing

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE 13D
Under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934*

LM Ericsson
Telephone Company

(Name of Issuer)

Class B Shares
(SEK 5.00 nominal value)

(Title of Class of Securities)

CUSIP No.
294821608**

(CUSIP Number)

Cevian Capital II GP Limited

11-15 Seaton Place

St. Helier, Jersey JE4 0QH

Channel Islands

Attention: Denzil Boschat

+44 1534 828 513

with a copy to:

Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP

919 Third Avenue

New York, NY 10022

Attention: Eleazer N. Klein, Esq.

(212) 756-2000

(Name, Address and Telephone Number of Person
Authorized to Receive Notices and Communications)

May 19, 2017

(Date of Event Which Requires Filing of This Statement)

If the filing person has previously filed a statement on Schedule
13G to report the acquisition that is the subject of this Schedule 13D, and is filing this schedule because of Rule 13d-1(e), Rule
13d-1(f) or Rule 13d-1(g), check the following box. [ ]

** There is no CUSIP number assigned to the Class B Shares. CUSIP
number 294821608 has been assigned to the American Depositary Shares (“ADSs“) of the Company. Each ADS represents
one Class B Share.

(Page 1 of 9 Pages)

______________________________

* The remainder of this cover page shall be filled out for a reporting
person’s initial filing on this form with respect to the subject class of securities, and for any subsequent amendment containing
information which would alter disclosures provided in a prior cover page.

The information required on the remainder of this cover page shall not be deemed to be “filed” for the purpose of Section
18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Act“) or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section of the
Act but shall be subject to all other provisions of the Act (however, see the Notes).

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Page 2 of 9 – SEC Filing

1

NAME OF REPORTING PERSON

Cevian Capital II GP Limited

2 CHECK THE APPROPRIATE BOX IF A MEMBER OF A GROUP

(a) ¨

(b) ý

3 SEC USE ONLY
4

SOURCE OF FUNDS

AF

5 CHECK BOX IF DISCLOSURE OF LEGAL PROCEEDING IS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO ITEMS 2(d) or 2(e) ¨
6

CITIZENSHIP OR PLACE OF ORGANIZATION

Jersey

NUMBER OF
SHARES
BENEFICIALLY
OWNED BY
EACH
REPORTING
PERSON WITH:
7

SOLE VOTING POWER

167,761,137

8

SHARED VOTING POWER

-0-

9

SOLE DISPOSITIVE POWER

167,761,137

10

SHARED DISPOSITIVE POWER

-0-

11

AGGREGATE AMOUNT BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY EACH PERSON

167,761,137

12 CHECK IF THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT IN ROW (11) EXCLUDES CERTAIN SHARES ¨
13

PERCENT OF CLASS REPRESENTED BY AMOUNT IN ROW (11)

5.57%

14

TYPE OF REPORTING PERSON

IA, OO

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Page 3 of 9 – SEC Filing

Item
1.
SECURITY
AND ISSUER
   
  This
statement on Schedule 13D (the “Schedule 13D“) relates to the
Class
B Shares, SEK 5.00 nominal value (the “Class B Shares“) of LM
Ericsson Telephone Company, a limited liability company organized under the Swedish
Companies Act (the “Issuer“). The principal executive offices of the
Issuer are located at
Torshamnsgatan 21, Kista, Stockholm, Sweden.  

 

Item
2.
IDENTITY
AND BACKGROUND
   
(a) This
Schedule 13D is filed by Cevian Capital II GP Limited, a limited company incorporated under the laws of Jersey (the “Reporting
Person
“), the general partner of Cevian Capital II Master Fund LP, a Cayman Islands limited partnership (the “Master
Fund
“) and Cevian Capital II Co-Investment Fund LP, a Cayman Islands limited partnership (the “Co-Investment
Fund
” and together with Cevian Capital Partners Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Master Fund, the “Cevian
Entities
“), with respect to the Class B Shares held by each of the Cevian Entities.
   
  The
filing of this statement should not be construed as an admission that the Reporting Person is, for the purposes of Section
13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the beneficial owner of the Class B Shares reported herein.
   
(b) The
principal business address of the Reporting Person is 4 Bond Street, St Helier, Jersey, JE4 5QR, Channel Islands.
   
(c) The
principal business of the Reporting Person is to serve as the sole general partner and to act as investment manager to each
of the Cevian Entities.
   
(d) The
Reporting Person has not, during the last five years, been convicted in a criminal proceeding (excluding traffic violations
or similar misdemeanors).
   
(e) The
Reporting Person has not, during the last five years, been a party to a civil proceeding of a judicial or administrative body
of competent jurisdiction and, as a result of such proceeding, was, or is subject to, a judgment, decree or final order enjoining
future violations of, or prohibiting or mandating activities subject to, federal or state securities laws or finding any violation
with respect to such laws.
   
(f) The
Reporting Person is a limited company organized under the laws of Jersey.
   
  Schedule
A
attached hereto sets forth the information required by Instruction C of the instructions to Schedule 13D.  

 

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Page 4 of 9 – SEC Filing

Item
3.
SOURCE
AND AMOUNT OF FUNDS OR OTHER CONSIDERATION
   
  As
of the date hereof, the Reporting Person has purchased for the accounts of the Cevian Entities an aggregate of 167,761,137
Class B Shares for an aggregate consideration (including brokerage commission) of approximately USD 1,056,441,237. The Cevian
Entities funded these purchases out of their general working capital.  The Class B Shares were purchased using Swedish
Krona. For the purposes of this Schedule 13D, a conversion rate of USD 1.00 for each SEK 8.7508 was used.

 

Item 4. PURPOSE OF TRANSACTION
   
  The Reporting Person acquired the Class
B Shares to which this Schedule 13D relates for investment purposes in the ordinary course of business because they believed
the Class B Shares represented an attractive investment opportunity.
   
  The Reporting Person intends to inform
the issuer’s nomination committee (the “Nomination Committee”) in writing that it’s shareholdings are of such significance
it has the right to participate in the Nomination Committee.  In this regard, the Reporting Person intends to propose
a Managing Partner at an affiliate of the Reporting Person as a member of the Nomination Committee.
   
  In pursuing such investment purposes,
the Reporting Person may further purchase, hold, vote, trade, dispose, engage in hedging and in similar transactions with
respect to the Class B Shares, other securities of the Issuer or derivative securities related thereto, or otherwise deal
in the Class B Shares or such other securities at times, and in such manner, as they deem advisable to benefit from changes
in market prices of such Class B Shares or such other securities, changes in the Issuer’s operations, business strategy or
prospects, or from a sale or merger of the Issuer. To evaluate such alternatives, the Reporting Person will routinely
monitor the Issuer’s operations, organizational and reporting structure, prospects, performance of business units,
management, executive compensation, development of competitive position, strategic matters, capital structure, and
prevailing market conditions, as well as alternative investment opportunities, liquidity requirements of the Reporting
Person and other investment considerations.  Consistent with its investment research methods and evaluation
criteria, the Reporting Person has discussed, and may continue to discuss, such matters with management or directors of
the Issuer, other shareholders, industry analysts, existing or potential strategic partners or competitors, investment
and financing professionals, sources of credit and other investors. Such factors and discussions may materially affect,
and result in, the Reporting Person’s modifying the Cevian Entities’ ownership of Class B Shares or other securities of
the Issuer or derivative securities related thereto, exchanging information with the Issuer and any of the foregoing
persons pursuant to appropriate confidentiality or similar agreements, proposing changes in the Issuer’s operations,
governance, capitalization, use of capital, financial metrics, capital allocations, organizational and reporting structure,
corporate structure, including its executive leadership team, executive compensation, acquisitions or dispositions,
proposing or nominating director candidates to the Issuer’s board of directors, changing their intention with
respect to any and all matters referred to in Item 4 of Schedule 13D and/or in proposing one or more of the other actions
described in subsections (a) through (j) of Item 4 of Schedule 13D as the Reporting Person may deem
appropriate.
  Except as set forth herein,
the Reporting Person has no present plan or proposal that would relate to or result in any of the matters set forth in subparagraphs
(a)-(j) of Item 4 of Schedule 13D.

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Page 5 of 9 – SEC Filing

Item 5. INTEREST IN SECURITIES
OF THE ISSUER
   
(a) See rows (11) and (13) of the cover pages
to this Schedule 13D for the aggregate number of Class B Shares and percentage of the Class B Shares beneficially owned by
the Reporting Person.  The percentage used in this Schedule 13D is calculated based upon 3,011,298,230 Class B Shares,
which is the difference obtained by subtracting the 58,097,522 Class B Shares held in treasury as of May 3, 2017 (as reported
in the Report of Foreign Private Issuer on Form 6-K filed by the Issuer with the SEC on May 3, 2017) from the 3,069,395,752
Class B Shares in issue as of December 31, 2016 (as reported in the Issuer’s Annual Report for the year ended December 31,
2016, available on the Issuer’s website).
   
  The Reporting Person also beneficially
owns 113,510 Class A Shares of the Issuer.
   
(b) See rows (7) through (10) of the cover
pages to this Schedule 13D for the number of Class B Shares as to which the Reporting Person has the sole power to vote or
direct the vote and sole power to dispose or to direct the disposition.
   
(c) The transactions in the Class B Shares
by the Reporting Person for the benefit of the Cevian Entities within the past sixty days, which were all in the open market,
are set forth in Schedule B, and are incorporated herein by reference.  
   
(d) No person other than the Cevian Entities
and the Reporting Person is known to have the right to receive, or the power to direct the receipt of dividends from, or proceeds
from the sale of, such Class B Shares.
   
(e) Not applicable.

 

Item 6. CONTRACTS, ARRANGEMENTS,
UNDERSTANDINGS OR RELATIONSHIPS WITH RESPECT TO SECURITIES OF THE ISSUER
   
  To the best of the Reporting Person’s
knowledge, there are no contracts, arrangements, understandings or relationships (legal or otherwise) among the persons named
in Item 2 hereof and between such persons and any person with respect to any securities of the Issuer, including but not limited
to transfer or voting of any of the securities of the Issuer, finder’s fees, joint ventures, loan or option arrangements,
puts or calls, guarantees of profits, division of profits or losses, or the giving or withholding of proxies, including any
securities pledged or otherwise subject to a contingency the occurrence of which would give another person voting power or
investment power over such securities other than standard default and similar provisions contained in loan agreements.

 

Item 7. MATERIAL TO BE FILED AS
EXHIBITS
   
  None.

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Page 6 of 9 – SEC Filing

SIGNATURES

After
reasonable inquiry and to the best of its knowledge and belief, the undersigned certifies that the information set forth in this
statement is true, complete and correct.

Date: May 30, 2017

 

  CEVIAN
CAPITAL II GP LIMITED
   
   
  By: /s/
Denzil Boschat
  Name: Denzil Boschat
  Title: Director

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Page 7 of 9 – SEC Filing

Schedule A

 

GENERAL PARTNERS,
CONTROL PERSONS, DIRECTORS AND
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF CERTAIN REPORTING PERSONS

 

The
following sets forth the name, position, address, principal occupation and citizenship of each general partner, control person,
director and/or executive officer of the Reporting Person (the “Instruction C Persons“). To the best of the Reporting
Person’s knowledge, (i) none of the Instruction C Persons during the last five years has been convicted in a criminal proceeding
(excluding traffic violations or other similar misdemeanors) or been a party to a civil proceeding of a judicial or administrative
body of competent jurisdiction and as a result of such proceeding was or is subject to a judgment, decree or final order enjoining
future violations of, or prohibiting or mandating activities subject to, federal or state securities laws or finding any violation
with respect to such laws and (ii) none of the Instruction C Persons owns any Class B Shares or is party to any contract or agreement
as would require disclosure in this Schedule 13D.

CEVIAN CAPITAL II GP LIMITED

 

Name Position Citizenship Present Principal
Occupation
Business Address
Denzil Boschat Director Jersey

Cevian CCO and Cevian Jersey CEO

4 Bond Street,
St. Helier, Jersey, JE4 5QR
Ronald M. Cacciola Director USA Sole – Proprieter, Snowden Management LLC 252 Snowden Lane, Princeton, New Jersey, 08450-3650, USA
W. Dexter Paine, III Director USA Partner – Paine Schwartz Partners LLC 475 Fifth Avenue 17th Floor, New York, NY 10017, USA
Liam Jones Director Jersey Director – Aztec Financial Services (Jersey) Limited Aztec Group House, 11-15 Seaton Place, St. Helier, Jersey, JE4 0QH
Jonathan White Director Jersey Lawyer – Consultant to Ogier & Intertrust Fiduciary Services 44 Esplanade
St. Helier, Jersey, JE4 9WG
Göran Casserlöv Head of Operations Sweden Cevian Head of Operations 4 Bond Street,
St. Helier, Jersey, JE4 5QR

 

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Page 8 of 9 – SEC Filing

Schedule
B

This
Schedule sets forth information with respect to each purchase and sale of Class B Shares which were effectuated by the Reporting
Person for the benefit of the Cevian Entities within the past sixty days. All transactions were effectuated in the open market
through a broker.

CEVIAN CAPITAL PARTNERS LIMITED

Trade
Date

(Year-Month-Day)

Class
B Shares Purchased (Sold)
Price
($)*
2017-03-31 1,471,458 6.79
2017-04-03 2,321,066 6.82
2017-04-04 2,288,266 6.73
2017-04-05 3,259,159 6.63
2017-04-06 1,529,554 6.65
2017-04-07 1,764,165 6.69
2017-04-10 1,469,032 6.71
2017-04-11 2,447,111 6.62
2017-04-12 1,600,110 6.67
2017-04-13 735,877 6.63
2017-04-18 2,728,234 6.55
2017-04-19 2,387,051 6.51
2017-04-20 2,523,485 6.56
2017-04-21 2,415,928 6.53
2017-04-25 4,363,669 6.36
2017-04-26 2,633,526 6.35
2017-04-27 2,523,182 6.48
2017-04-28 1,663,615 6.53
2017-05-02 1,646,898 6.68
2017-05-03 2,862,361 6.60
2017-05-04 1,133,629 6.68
2017-05-05 2,022,280 6.70
2017-05-08 896,079 6.69
2017-05-09 1,454,815 6.74
2017-05-10 1,944,410 6.70
2017-05-11 2,359,075 6.60
2017-05-12 1,738,308 6.59
2017-05-15 1,377,306 6.71
2017-05-16 1,442,550 6.79
2017-05-17 2,058,651 6.75
2017-05-18 2,766,047 6.61
2017-05-19 5,252,578 6.63
2017-05-22 3,575,018 6.67
2017-05-23 2,911,659 6.90
2017-05-24 1,277,750 7.06
2017-05-26 2,186,053 6.98
2017-05-30 1,254,870 6.95

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Page 9 of 9 – SEC Filing

 

CEVIAN CAPITAL II CO-INVESTMENT FUND
LP

 

Trade
Date

(Year-Month-Day)

Class
B Shares Purchased (Sold)
Price
($)*
2017-03-31 105,104 6.79
2017-04-03 165,790 6.82
2017-04-04 163,448 6.73
2017-04-05 232,797 6.63
2017-04-06 109,254 6.65
2017-04-07 126,012 6.69
2017-04-10 104,931 6.71
2017-04-11 174,794 6.62
2017-04-12 114,294 6.67
2017-04-13 52,563 6.63
2017-04-18 194,874 6.55
2017-04-19 170,504 6.51
2017-04-20 180,249 6.56
2017-04-21 172,566 6.53
2017-04-25 311,691 6.36
2017-04-26 188,109 6.35
2017-04-27 180,227 6.48
2017-04-28 118,830 6.53
2017-05-02 117,636 6.68
2017-05-03 204,454 6.60
2017-05-04 80,974 6.68
2017-05-05 144,449 6.70
2017-05-08 64,006 6.69
2017-05-09 103,915 6.74
2017-05-10 138,886 6.70
2017-05-11 168,505 6.60
2017-05-12 124,165 6.59
2017-05-15 98,379 6.71
2017-05-16 103,039 6.79
2017-05-17 147,047 6.75
2017-05-18 197,575 6.61
2017-05-19 375,184 6.63
2017-05-22 255,358 6.67
2017-05-23 207,976 6.90
2017-05-24 91,268 7.06
2017-05-26 156,147 6.98
2017-05-30 89,634 6.95

*       Excluding
commissions, SEC fees, etc. (rounded to nearest cent). The Class B Shares were purchased using Swedish Krona. For purposes of
this Schedule 13D, a conversion rate of USD 1.00 for each SEK 8.7508 was used.

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