Activist investor Blackwells to call on Peloton to fire CEO, explore sale

An activist is pushing Peloton to fire its chief executive officer and consider a sale as its share price has plummeted, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Blackwells Capital, which has a stake of less than 5% in Peloton, believes Peloton could be an attractive acquisition target for larger technology or fitness-oriented companies, the person said.

Blackwells is arguing that Peloton is weaker today than before the Covid-19 pandemic. The firm places much of the blame on CEO John Foley, who is also chairman, according to the person, who requested anonymity to speak on the private matter.

Peloton declined to comment. A spokesperson for Blackwells didn't immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. Foley also didn't return a request for comment.

To be sure, Foley and other insiders have super-voting Class B shares, which gave them control over 80% of Peloton's voting power as of Sept. 30, according to a proxy filing. That means it would take significant pressure from other shareholders to make any change at the company.

Peloton's stock is now trading below its September 2019 initial public offering price of $29. It closed Friday at $27.06, giving the company a market cap of $8.8 billion. Roughly a year ago, Peloton's market value topped out at nearly $50 billion.

This past week, CNBC reported that Peloton is working with consulting firm McKinsey & Co. to look for areas in the business to cut costs, as momentum for its at-home fitness equipment slows. CNBC also reported that the company is planning to temporarily pause production of its bikes and treadmills, on a staggered timeline, to help reset inventory levels. Peloton shares tumbled more than 20% on Thursday on that news.

In response, Foley said in a memo to workers that it isn't true Peloton is "halting all production." However, he said that the company must "right-size" its inventory. He also said Peloton is considering job cuts in order to be a more flexible business.

On Thursday evening, the company reported preliminary second-quarter revenue of $1.14 billion and said it ended the quarter with 2.77 million subscribers.

"We are taking significant corrective actions to improve our profitability outlook and optimize our costs across the company," said Foley, in a statement along with the second-quarter figures.

Among other things, Blackwells is also critical of critical of Peloton's inconsistent pricing and manufacturing strategies, the person said.

At the end of this month, Peloton will begin charging customers hundreds of dollars more in setup and delivery fees for its Bike and Tread, blaming historic inflation and heightened supply chain expenses. Just last year, Peloton had cut the price of its Bike by about 20%.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on the Blackwells news.