Activist investor who took on Apple, Exxon readies his next act

Charlie Penner, who steered a tiny investor to a successful board challenge at Exxon in 2021, is launching his own activist hedge fund this fall, people familiar with the effort said. Ananym Capital, which Penner is starting with P2 alum Alex Silver, is expected to take stakes in midsized public companies and push for changes.

Penner left Engine No. 1 after its campaign at Exxon — the biggest upset in corporate history — after the firm turned away from activism, and spent months negotiating an exit that would let him take his ideas elsewhere. (The last of those ideas, Engine No. 1’s soft-peddled effort to push Coca-Cola to deal with its carbon footprint, fizzled after he left.)

Penner, who declined to comment, plans to engage privately with companies, but won’t hesitate to go public if stiff-armed. An unapologetic activist, Penner is throwback to a time before a softer brand of “constructivism” took over. He spent 15 years at Jana Partners, tilting at Time Warner and Whole Foods, among other companies, at the height of that firm’s muscle. In 2018, he led a campaign to force Apple to reckon with the effects of smartphone use on kids’ mental health; six months later, the company rolled out new tools to limit screen time.