Activist Investor Seeks to Remove Colony Capital CEO Tom Barrack

Tom Barrack

NEW YORK—Activist investor Blackwells Capital is seeking to oust Colony Capital’s CEO Tom Barrack and will nominate five candidates for election to the company’s board of directors at the upcoming 2020 annual shareholders meeting. Blackwells, which reports it has a 1.85% stake in the company, says it has tried to engage privately with Colony “regarding badly needed business improvement initiatives and corporate governance reforms” over the last year in order to close what Blackwells says is a wide gap between Colony’s stock price and its intrinsic value.

“Under the right leadership, we believe Colony can be positioned to create value for shareholders and that its current stock price does not reflect Colony’s true worth,” says Jason Aintabi, Chief Investment Officer of Blackwells, in prepared comments. “Colony’s Board has given Tom Barrack too much deference and too much latitude for too long. His continued, imperial reign over the company damages its credibility and business prospects and creates a tremendous overhang on the stock.”