Investing.com -- Starboard Value disclosed a new position in Solstice Advanced Materials on Tuesday, stating the company trades below its fair value and requires management oversight to improve stock performance.

Starboard managing member and chief executive Jeffrey Smith spoke at the annual 13D Monitor Active-Passive Investor Summit in New York, describing Solstice as trading "stupid cheap." Smith said the company has "great businesses but is undervalued," pointing to the market's diminished confidence in management's execution of its core operations.

Smith outlined that management should concentrate on its main refrigerants and nuclear operations while reducing approximately $100 million in costs company-wide.

Solstice was spun off from Honeywell one year ago and initially recorded substantial share price gains. The stock has declined roughly 30% since reaching an all-time high at the close of trading on June 30. The decline followed a failed $14.5 billion acquisition of specialty chemicals company Element Solutions.

The cash-and-stock transaction was announced on July 6 as a strategy to take advantage of increasing demand from data centers and chip industries. The companies terminated the agreement on August 27 after receiving shareholder feedback from both parties.

Smith also addressed Starboard's position in Knife River Corp, where the firm has prepared director candidates for board election. Smith stated the company is "a very attractive acquisition target." Starboard announced its investment in September and has since advocated for improved profit margins at Knife River.

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