Activist investor Elliott nominates list of directors for Salesforce board

Activist investor Elliott nominates list of directors for Salesforce board, sources say

  • Activist investor Elliott Management has nominated a number of directors for Salesforce’s board of directors, sources told CNBC’s David Faber.
  • The nomination window closes on March 14, and it’s unclear if there are two or three nominees, Faber said on Squawk on the Street.
  • Salesforce will report its fourth-quarter results after the market close on Wednesday.

The Salesforce West office building in San Francisco, California on Wednesday, January 25, 2023.

Marlena Slots | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Activist investor Elliott Management has nominated a number of directors for Salesforce’s board of directors, sources told CNBC’s David Faber on Wednesday.

The nomination window closes on March 14, and it’s unclear if there are two or three nominees, Faber said on Squawk on the Street. According to people familiar with the situation, the list will likely include Jesse Cohn, who runs the activist practice at Elliott, but Faber said his position has not been confirmed.

Salesforce did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Activists are circling the cloud-based enterprise software company. Elliott Management unveiled its multi-billion dollar investment in Salesforce in January, and the company announced that Mason Morfit, CEO of ValueAct Capital, will join its board of directors this month. Dan Loeb’s hedge fund Third Point has also taken a position in the company, CNBC confirmed in February.

Salesforce, which joined the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 2020, has faced high-profile exits and slowing revenue growth of late, and has faced criticism for buying companies like Slack and Tableau at steep prices. In November, Salesforce issued weaker-than-expected revenue guidance for the quarter.

On Jan. 4, Salesforce announced plans to cut 10% of its workforce and said it would reduce some office space as part of a restructuring plan. The company also laid off fewer than 1,000 employees in November.

Salesforce’s stock underperformed in 2022, falling nearly 48% while the S&P 500 fell 19%. The stock is up about 24% so far this year.

The company will announce its fourth-quarter results after the market close on Wednesday.

— CNBC’s Jordan Novet contributed to this report.