HPE adds KLA chair to board in pact with activist investor Elliott
Robert Calderoni, chairman of chip tools maker KLA, has joined HPE's board and will lead a new strategy committee formed under a cooperation agreement with Elliott that includes information-sharing, the company said on Wednesday.
Elliott, which holds a stake of more than $1.5 billion in HPE, also has the right to appoint an employee to HPE's board under the agreement that lasts at least a year and prevents the hedge fund from launching proxy contests.
The announcement is a win for Elliott, which manages about $72.7 billion in assets and has a long history of pushing for changes at companies including Southwest Airlines, Phillips 66 and Texas Instruments.
Elliott has been pushing ahead with campaigns globally this year despite market volatility that led many peers to settle. It won two seats at oil refiner Phillips 66 in May in a high-profile proxy fight.
Shares of HPE, which makes servers deployed in data centers for AI workloads, were little changed in morning trading on Wednesday. The stock has declined 5 per cent so far this year, underperforming AI server rivals such as Dell Technologies and the benchmark S&P 500 index.
Demand has boomed for AI servers as big tech companies and startups race to roll out generative AI services such as ChatGPT that require huge amounts of computing power. But the business has been a drag on margins because of the high costs of advanced chips designed by the likes of Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices.
HPE said its strategy committee will also include independent board directors Gary Reiner, Raymond Lane and Charles Noski. It also said Calderoni and any Elliott employee director would be nominated to stand for election at HPE's 2026 annual shareholder meeting.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
Allianz Life says majority of customers' data stolen in hack
U.S. insurance giant Allianz Life said on Saturday that hackers stole the personal information of the majority of its customers, financial professionals, and select Allianz Life employees. The insurance giant's filing with Maine's attorney general did not immediately provide the number of customers affected. As per the filing, the data breach, which the company described as a hack, occurred on July 16 and was discovered on July 17. The data breach was first reported by TechCrunch. "On July 16, 2025, a malicious threat actor gained access to a third-party, cloud-based CRM system used by Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America (Allianz Life). The threat actor was able to obtain personally identifiable data related to the majority of Allianz Life's customers, financial professionals, and select Allianz Life employees, using a social engineering technique," a spokesperson for Allianz Life told Reuters in an emailed statement. The insurance giant said it notified the FBI and based on its ongoing investigation that there is no evidence the Allianz Life network or other company systems were accessed, including their policy administration system.
CNA
7 hours ago
- CNA
South Korea seeks mutually agreeable US trade package as Aug 1 tariff deadline looms
SEOUL: South Korea will prepare a trade package that is mutually agreeable with the United States ahead of minister-level meetings planned next week and a US tariff-pause deadline of Aug 1, the presidential office said on Saturday (Jul 26). The package will include shipbuilding cooperation, a sector of high interest to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who discussed the matter with South Korea's Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan on Friday, it said in a statement. Friday's meeting was a follow-up to a meeting on Thursday, where Lutnick and Kim reaffirmed their commitment to reach a trade deal by Aug 1, after a joint meeting of finance ministers and top trade envoys that had been scheduled for Friday was postponed. South Korea, facing 25 per cent tariffs, is rushing to reach a trade deal with Washington, with National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac visiting the US recently for high-level talks and Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo also in the US for negotiations, as pressure grows on officials to clinch a deal that is no worse than Japan's that cut tariffs to 15 per cent. South Korea's trade negotiations with the US have included non-tariff barriers in the agricultural and digital service sectors, but foreign exchange has not been part of trade talks beyond usual consultations, according to South Korean officials. US President Donald Trump arrived in Scotland on Friday for bilateral talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday, which could yield a trade deal with the European Union, after making a deal earlier this week with Japan and the Philippines. Next week, US officials will hold a new round of trade talks with China in Sweden for an extension to a separate deadline of Aug 12 set between the two countries. South Korea's Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol and Foreign Minister Cho Hyun will also hold meetings with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and State Secretary Marco Rubio, respectively, next week.
CNA
11 hours ago
- CNA
Amorim prepared to reintegrate exiled Man Utd players if valuations not met
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has said he is prepared to reintegrate the club's exiled players into his squad if they cannot be sold for fees that match the valuations expected by the former Premier League champions. Alejandro Garnacho, Jadon Sancho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia have been excluded from the squad that has travelled to the United States for the club's pre-season tour with the quartet seeking transfers away from Old Trafford. But while they have had to work separately from the first team squad since United returned for training ahead of the new season, Amorim acknowledged he would be prepared to accept the players back into his squad should they not be sold. "Some players have to find a new place to have more space in the team and other players clearly show they want a new challenge and want new teams," Amorim told reporters in Chicago ahead of Saturday's pre-season meeting with West Ham United. "We are just allowing these players to have time to think and to decide. If we reach a point where they have to join the team, they will join the team because they are our players. "I'm ready to receive the players. They have more competition, more competition if you want to play in the World Cup next year, you need to play. "So I'm really happy with that because I have more options. If they have to fight each other to play, for me it's perfect." United have signed Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo so far in the transfer window, while England winger Marcus Rashford has left to join Barcelona on loan as Amorim's side looks to bounce back from a lowly 15th place finish in last year's league table. The club's financial situation is such that United need to sell players if they want to add to their squad. Chief Executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox are charged with finding buyers for their "bomb squad". "I know for a fact these people - Jason, Omar and the club - have a number for these players," said Amorim. "If they don't reach that, they will be Manchester United players, no doubt about that.
