Dan Loeb, the head of hedge fundThird Point, this week praised Intel's decision to appoint Pat Gelsinger as its new CEO. Third Point plans to remain a long-term shareholder of Intel and believes that the company has an extraordinary potential.
Previously, the hedge fund called on Intel to explore spinning off its manufacturing operations, divest certain acquisitions, and stop brain drain
In his letter to Intel's board in late January, Dan Loeb outlined his view on several major problems that affected Intel in the recent years and enabled competitors to gain strength and market share at Intel's expense. One of the issues noted by Loeb was Intel's human capital management problem that led to a brain drain of technical talent. Another point raised by Mr. Loeb was Intel's loss of manufacturing leadership to TSMC and Samsung Foundry, which made him question whether Intel should remain an integrated device manufacturer. Finally, Loeb suggested Intel to explore 'potential divestment of certain failed acquisitions.'
The appointment of Pat Gelsinger to the CEO position as well as subsequent return of renowned processor architect Glenn Hinton as well as platform architect Sunil Shenoy — two long-term Intel veterans — sparked optimism around the industry and naturally addressed Dan Loeb's concerns about Intel's human capital management issue. Later on, the incoming CEO said that Intel had identified issues that plagued its 7 nm fabrication process and the program was on a 'health and recovery' track. Gelsinger indicated that the company would continue to make most of its products in-house, but would outsource when and if necessary, which sends a clear message to investors that he wants Intel to remain an integrated device manufacturer.
Apparently, the head of Third Point believes that Pat Gelsinger will be able to solve Intel's pressing issues.
"Once Gelsinger has successfully regained Intel’s position as the premier microprocessor vendor in the world, we believe the opportunity for additional shareholder value creation is enormous," Loeb wrote in a letter to investors, reports Bloomberg. "The ability to leverage those resources in order to better capture the full unbounded growth of this market opportunity set makes us excited to be long-term shareholders."
Whether or not Pat Gelsinger will be that successful as Intel CEO is something that only time will tell.
