According to a recent report from Wall Street Journal, activist investor Elliott Management holds more than a 9% stake in the popular image sharing and social media service Pinterest. The news, which reveals Elliott as the company’s biggest investor, sent Pinterest stock (PINS) soaring more than 24 percent in extended trading on Thursday.
WSJ reports that Elliott Management is currently in talks with the company, although the nature of the conversation remains unclear. However, the ability of the activist investor to prompt some changes is considered limited since Pinterest co-founder Ben Silbermann has around 37 percent of the voting rights and can make it difficult for Elliott if their strategies are not aligned.
The Pinterest stock has surged during the pandemic and peaked at $85.90 at one point in February 2021. However, a number of factors, including the mounting inflation and reduced digital advertising spending, have sent the company’s shares on a downward spiral and had them trade at $17.25 at one point in May. This caused Silbermann to resign from his position as the company’s CEO last month.
It remains to be seen what Elliott Management intends to do with Pinterest. The investor is known for successfully bailing out struggling tech companies and has in the past done the same with popular social media platform Twitter.