Shining a Light in a Dark Corner: Does EDGAR Search Activity Reveal the Strategically Leaked Plans of Activist Investors?

Abstract

We provide evidence of a network of information flow between activists and other investors prior to 13D filings. We match EDGAR search activity to investor IP addresses, identifying specific investors who persistently download information on an individual activist’s campaign targets in the days prior to that activist’s 13D disclosures. This outside investor’s knowledge of pending activist campaign plans seems to benefit both parties: the informed investor, unnamed in the 13D, increases its holdings in the targeted stock prior to the price surge upon 13D disclosure, while the activist earns voting support that increases their likelihood of pursuing and winning a proxy fight.

Keywords: Activist campaigns, Investor coordination, Investor search activity, Proxy fights

JEL Classification: G14, G30, G34, G38