News emerged overnight that two Israeli institutional investors (Brosh Funds Management and Exodus Management) are requesting an emerging meeting with advertising technology group Matomy (MTMY), having acquired a combined 6.9% stake in the business.
Matomy - whose shares rise 0.7% to 102p - is being asked to convene an EGM to ‘consider certain strategic, corporate governance and related matters’. This looming shareholder activism comes as the company prepares to report its interim results on 21 September.
Broker Canaccord Genuity, which rates Matomy a ‘buy’ with a 114p price target, comments: ‘Management has yet to respond, and it is unclear to us what the new investors are trying to achieve, but we would expect a positive response from the shares.'
The ad tech space, which on the London Stock Exchange at least is made up almost entirely by Israeli companies, is enjoying a mini-renaissance after suffering in 2015 due to a crackdown on online advertising fraud.
Matomy is up 36% from lows seen in late July while Taptica (TAP) (formerly known as Marimedia) is up more than 150% since the end of June and recently reported a very strong set of interim results. Elsewhere private equity firm Vector Capital agreed in August to buy US ad tech firm Sizmek for $122 million.
To put this recovery in context, even Taptica is still below the levels it reached before its April 2015 profit warning. The space as a whole suffered a big hit to its credibility after constituent Adgorithms (ADGO:AIM) delivered a particularly egregious warning in October 2015.
