15 Stocks Targeted By Activist Hedge Funds

7. CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS)

Company Market Cap as of December 31: $56.49 Billion

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63

CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) is a healthcare company that provides health solutions. It offers traditional, voluntary, and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services. Down by about 44% in 2024, it is one of the stocks targeted by activist hedge funds disappointed by the underperformance.

CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) faced a challenging year, largely due to problems with its Medicare Advantage business. As a result, the company initiated a strategic review, leading to employee layoffs as part of a multibillion-dollar cost-cutting plan.

Activist hedge fund Glenview Capital launched an activist campaign against the company. The hedge fund laid out proposed fixes that it hopes will help fix the struggling business. Nevertheless, the hedge fund refuted claims that it proposed a breakup of the healthcare company as one of the ways of unlocking hidden value.

Glenview has already scored its biggest win, having secured four seats on the board. The board seats leave it in a strategic position to influence CVS Health Corporation’s (NYSE:CVS) direction as part of its activist campaign. CVS announced a new plan to reduce spending by $2 billion over a number of years. Among other things, the plan calls for increasing the use of artificial intelligence and streamlining operations. With 851 stores closed as of August, the company is also finalizing a three-year plan to close 900 of its locations.