Activist Starboard amasses Autodesk stake, weighs suit over delayed probe disclosure

Jeffrey Smith, CEO and chief investment officer at Starboard Value LP.David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Starboard Value, the activist fund run by Jeff Smith, has taken a sizable stake in graphics-design firm Autodesk and has spoken with the company's board in recent weeks over a number of serious concerns involving its disclosures around an internal investigation that led to the ouster of its chief financial officer.

Starboard's stake is valued at roughly $500 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The activist, which has a long track record of investing in the technology sector, is particularly concerned about the timing of Autodesk's disclosure of an internal investigation which revealed that executives misled investors around the company's free cash flow metrics and operating margins, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss confidential information freely.

The results of that probe led to the ouster of Autodesk's then-CFO, Deborah Clifford, who was moved to a different executive role within Autodesk. The probe found that executives manipulated reporting tied to company's contract billing structure, as Autodesk shifted from upfront payments to annualized payments, to improve those metrics.

Autodesk first disclosed in April that it had begun an internal investigation into disclosure issues around those metrics, almost a month after it had first begun the investigation and had informed the Securities and Exchange Commission that it was probing its financial reports. Autodesk shares slid 20% over the next few weeks. The company's market cap now sits slightly below $50 billion.

The delayed disclosure came a little more than a week after the deadline to nominate directors closed. The tight window and timing of the disclosure has raised significant concerns inside Starboard, the people said, that Autodesk's board deliberately chose not to inform shareholders ahead of its annual meeting. Such a delay would potentially limit a shareholder's ability to nominate its own candidates in a contested fight.

Starboard is weighing legal action in Delaware Chancery court to compel the reopening of Autodesk's nominating window and the delay of Autodesk's annual meeting, the people said. Autodesk's shareholder meeting is currently scheduled for July 16.

The activist also believes that the company can drive actual margin improvement and improve investor communications to help bolster Autodesk's stock, the people said.

Starboard has built stakes in other major technology companies, including Marc Benioff's Salesforce and Splunk, which was sold to Cisco in 2023 for $28 billion.

News of Starboard's stake and plans was reported earlier by the Wall Street Journal.

Autodesk has faced activist scrutiny before. In 2016, it settled with two activist investors at Sachem Head Capital Management and Eminence Capital to stave off a proxy contest.

Autodesk disclosed earlier this year that it is facing Justice Department and SEC probes. A representative for the company did not immediately return a request for comment.