Ceridian Hedged In by Investors?

Ceridian Shakeout: The ongoing proxy fight at HR services provider Ceridian has taken another unusual turn. Top executives at the Minneapolis-based company have been under pressure from two activist hedge funds that own shares in the company to sell off the business in pieces—specifically its Comdata Corp. subsidiary. Instead, Ceridian’s management allowed Comdata to expand its holdings by acquiring Inter-Tax Inc. in March. What’s more, Ceridian “has hired strategic advisors to help its board examine options for boosting performance,” according to the Star Tribune newspaper, a reference to management plans to sell the company as a whole, rather than in pieces. One of the funds, Relational Investors, has sold off all its shares in Ceridian. The other investment firm, Pershing Square Capital Management, has already nominated its own board of directors and said it plans to ask shareholders to approve them.