Activist investor Starboard Value takes 7.7% stake in chipmaker Qorvo

(Reuters) -Starboard Value has built a 7.7% stake in Qorvo, the chipmaker revealed in a filing on Friday, as the activist investor looks to boost the company's weak share price.

Shares of the company rose over 8% in premarket trading.

The Apple supplier has been grappling with stiff competition and slowing orders for its smartphone chips as consumers gravitate towards entry-tier smartphones, while larger rivals such as Broadcom and Qualcomm benefit from a recovery in the Chinese smartphone market.

In October, Qorvo said the shift away from mid-tier 5G Android smartphones will impact its revenue in the second half of fiscal 2025. The company is expected to report a 16% drop in third-quarter revenue, as per data compiled by LSEG.

Starboard's stake in Qorvo is worth more than $500 million, as of the stock's last closing price on Thursday.

The Jeffrey Smith-led hedge fund is one of the world's most prominent activist investors and has pushed for changes at firms including Pfizer and Salesforce.

Qorvo's shares fell over 37% last year, underperforming its peers, partly due to a softer economy and a slower adoption of artificial intelligence, which has been a major driver of growth for many chipmakers.

Adding to the firm's woes, it was removed from the benchmark S&P 500 index in December last year.

(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

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