Avantor among ‘big callouts’ from prime broker filings, says Gordon Haskett

Gordon Haskett head of event-driven research Don Bilson noted that Goldman Sachs and UBS kicked off 13F season for the prime brokers and noted that no activist has yet to “cop to this large” Avantor (AVTR) position that UBS bought in Q1. “For a couple of years, at least, this $9bn distributor of lab equipment has ranked high on our activist list and this UBS position is a pretty clear sign that someone was watching at the end of March. As for whether they are still there, we would note AVTR disclosed on Monday that it has adopted a severance and change in control policy,” the firm told investors. The “other big callout from the filing” involves Teleflex (TFX), which is also a “down on its luck healthcare/Life Sciences name,” says the firm, which notes that UBS picked up 3M shares during Q1. Knowing now that someone accumulated a large position this winter, “we suppose TFX’s breakup announcement may have been designed to thwart an attack,” the firm added.