Rough Patch Continues for Barry Rosenstein’s JANA Partners

JANA Partners Cuts Stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

– Shares Owned by JANA Partners (as of June 30): 4.58 Million
– Value of JANA Partners’ Holding (as of June 30): $381.30 Million

JANA Partners reduced its exposure to Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by a whopping 6.00 million shares during the three months that ended June 3o, finishing the second quarter with 4.58 million shares worth $381.30 million. The position made up 6.5% of the hedge fund’s overall portfolio. Just recently, the world’s largest drug retailing chain announced plans to shut down two websites, Drugstore.com and Beauty.com, five years after acquiring them as part of the $429 million-acquisition of Drugstore.com in 2011. Walgreens has been unwinding the acquisition to focus on its own website devoted to its flagship drugstore chain, Walgreens.com. According to Internet Retailer, Walgreens represents the 37th largest online retailer in North America, with estimated online sales of $1.3 billion in 2015. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s stock has lost around 3% since the start of the year. Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global has 3.47 million shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) in its portfolio as of the end of the June quarter.

JANA Partners Reduces Exposure to ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

– Shares Owned by JANA Partners (as of June 30): 18.04 Million
– Value of JANA Partners’ Holding (as of June 30): $862.32 Million

ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE:CAG) was the largest position in JANA Partners’ equity portfolio at the end of the second quarter, accounting for 14.7% of the hedge fund’s portfolio. The activist hedge fund trimmed its ConAgra position by 16% during the June quarter to 18.04 million shares, valued at $862.32 million on June 30. The shares of the maker of well-known packaged foods such as Slim Jim jerky, Hunt’s tomato sauce and Chef Boyardee are up 9% since the beginning of the year. In late July, analysts at Jefferies upped their price target on ConAgra Foods to $56 from $55 and reiterated their ‘Buy’ rating, citing its asset sale valuation framework and the spin-off of its Lamb Weston food-service business. Jefferies analysts believe the company has the potential to unlock approximately $14 billion in incremental value by spinning off undervalued growth assets such as Lamb Weston, “selling brands with a low tax basis using the $4 billion tax loss carry-forward from failed Ralcorp deal to efficiently return cash to shareholders,” and massively enhancing profitability of the remaining businesses. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Advisors owns 2.08 million shares of ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE:CAG) as of June 30.

Disclosure: None