A top shareholder at THG PLC (LSE:THG), the e-commerce group, has joined other activist investors in calling for its chairman to be removed.
Ophorst Van Marwijk Kooy Vermogensbeheer, the Dutch investment firm and THG's tenth-largest owner with a 1.89% stake, said it would be joining activist investor Kelso in voting against the re-election of Charles Allen as chairman.
Kelso, the investment fund which owns 0.55%, has been pushing for Allen's axing as it claims he is central to a "lack of action" on the company's strategy and the "disappointing" market valuation.
"Whilst major strategic and structural issues remain unaddressed, the poor share price cannot be blamed on the London Stock Exchange. As a result of the lack of progress we plan to vote against the chair at the upcoming AGM," Kelso said last month.
It also said it is "firmly convinced that the sum of the parts valuation of THG continues to significantly exceed the current market capitalisation" and that this discount would "narrow significantly" in the event of a move to a premium listing, which would enable the shares to join the FTSE indices.
Ophorst said it would join the likes of Oliver Cookson, the founder of Myprotein who holds a 1.6% stake in THG, and Kelso in voting against the group's chairman at its AGM on June 24.