Overview

• Engine Capital, which owns about 3% of Avantor, urged the company to pursue a sale, refresh its board, cut costs, divest non-core assets and ramp up share buybacks in a public letter.
• The activist investor pegged a strategic sale value at $17–$19 per share and said a comprehensive turnaround could raise the stock to $22–$26 by the end of fiscal 2027.
• Avantor’s shares climbed over 5% intraday Monday, trading near ten times next-year EBITDA after a roughly 57% decline since July 2024.
• Engine Capital accused Avantor of “self-inflicted” operating failures—citing weak pricing discipline, executive turnover and poor capital allocation—as drivers of its lagging margins and market-share losses to peers.
• Avantor’s board responded that it is already implementing measures to improve performance and declined to address the specific overhaul proposals.