In a newly-amended 13D filing, Carl Icahn’s Icahn Capital LP reported ownership of 19.17 million shares in Hologic Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX), which account for 6.75% of the company outstanding shares. This marks a decrease of 3.06 million shares from the stake disclosed in the previous 13D filing, submitted with the SEC in mid-March. At the beginning of this month, Jonathan Christodoro and Samuel Merksamer, both employees of Mr. Icahn’s investment firm, resigned from the company’s Board of Directors, with Icahn Capital deciding not to replace the emptied Board seats. The activist investor acquired a double-digit stake in Hologic Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) in 2013, voicing his plans to “get involved on the board” rather than break-up or push for a sale of the company. In December 2013, the developer and supplier of diagnostics products, medical imaging systems and surgical products announced the appointment of the aforementioned freshly-resigned Directors, after reaching a settlement agreement with Icahn Capital LP.
Shares of Hologic have advanced by 58% in the past two years, with Mr. Icahn and his team greatly contributing to the exceptional performance delivered by the company. The smart money sentiment towards Hologic decreased notably in the fourth quarter of 2015, as the number of money managers with stakes in the company declined to 33 from 38 quarter-on-quarter. Those 33 hedge funds amassed 15.17% of the company on December 31. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies acquired a new stake of 1.67 million shares in Hologic Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) during the December quarter.
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As disclosed in a Schedule 13G filing, John H. Lewis’ Osmium Partners LLC currently owns 2.07 million shares of Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE:RST), representing 9.5% of the company’s outstanding common stock. This compares with the stake of 2.12 million shares disclosed in the fund’s 13F filing for the final quarter of 2015. According to several filings with the SEC, the provider of technology-based interactive language-learnings solutions is seeking to optimize profitability of its language and literacy Enterprise & Education segment by exiting the direct sales presence in most non-U.S. and non-northern European markets. The company also plans to close its software development operations in France and China. The freshly-announced refocus and realignment efforts are expected to reduce Rosetta Stone’s global full-time headcount by roughly 17%, which would result in annual expense reductions of $19 million. The language-learning company plans to implement these seemingly major moves in order to drive up profitability.
Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE:RST) operates its business through two separate segments: the Enterprise & Education segment, which generates revenue from sales to educational institutions, corporations, and government agencies around the globe; and the Consumer segment, which involves sales to individuals and retail partners. The company’s total revenue for 2015 was $217.67 million, down from $261.85 million in 2014 and $264.65 million in 2013. The decrease was driven by a decline of $57.5 million in Consumer revenues, partly offset by a $13.4 million increase in Enterprise & Education revenue. Rosetta Stone has seen its market value decline by 15% in the past 12 months. John W. Rogers’ Ariel Investments is the largest equity holder of Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE:RST) within our database, with 4.14 million shares as of the end of 2015.
