In 2013, I attended the annual Activist Investor Conference in New York, and had the chance to learn from a variety of top North American activists. Here are some of the highlights. Aside from the well-known names (such as Nelson Peltz and Carl Icahn), most activist funds are small with concentrated holdings. Often they are family funds, as big institutional clients don’t want the association with activists. Most activists focus on small and micro-cap companies as this is often where the most egregious management practices and extreme opportunities are to be found. They are mainly value investors, looking for cheap...