Activist investor Starboard Value has built a big stake in chip maker Qorvo and is seeking changes to boost the company’s lagging share price, according to people familiar with the matter. 

Qorvo shares surged 6.8% in overnight trading.

The details 

Starboard has amassed a 7.7% position in the company, the people said. The stake, valued at around half a billion dollars, is expected to be revealed in a securities filing Friday morning, they said. 

The details around Starboard’s plans for Qorvo couldn’t be learned. 

Qorvo, based in Greensboro, N.C., had a market value of nearly $7 billion as of Thursday. 

Its share price has stumbled in recent months. The business has struggled to rein in expenses and has faced stiffer competition from other semiconductor companies including Skyworks Solutions and Broadcom. 

Qorvo shares plummeted late last year after the company forecast quarterly revenue and profit below Wall Street estimates. 

The context

Qorvo makes so-called radio frequency chips used by customers ranging from smartphone makers to infrastructure and defense companies. 

Chief Financial Officer Grant Brown said in late October that Qorvo was taking actions, including factory consolidation, to improve profitability. A shift by consumers toward entry-tier smartphones, especially Android models, was weighing on the business, he said. 

Starboard, led by Jeff Smith, has a history with chip companies and a predecessor to Qorvo. More than a decade ago, the firm had a position in TriQuint Semiconductor, where it pushed for changes and nominated board directors. TriQuint later merged with RF Micro Devices in 2014 and the combined entity became known as Qorvo. 

Starboard has held investments in a number of other chip companies over the years, including Nvidia, Marvell Technology, ON Semiconductor and Mellanox Technologies, before it was sold to Nvidia in 2019. 

Starboard has been busy lately. The firm has recently revealed stakes in Pfizer, Tylenol-maker Kenvue and bitcoin-mining operator Riot Platforms.