Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (FSYS)

[Democritus_of_Abdera]

Re: Activist Investor Becker Drapkin...

In the SEC 13D/A filed today, Becker Drapkin indicated that they increased their share of FSYS to 7.9%.

This could be foreshadowing an active interest in FSYS with the possibility of Becker Drapkin seeking Board representation or it could be a passive investment... It is hard to tell at this time as Becker Drapkin has a history of both behaviors (see #msg-105360974)

Regarding FSYS, Becker made a $7.0M investment in FSYS during the 2nd quarter of 2007, but had exited the position the following quarter (see: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1346543/000095013407018259/d49146e13fvhr.txt )

One might view Becker Drapkin's Ruby Tuesday (RT) investment in Q1 2012 as a model... Here, like FSYS, RT had a conservative CEO and the company stock price had been stagnating (see links below). Becker Drapkin aggressively acquired board seats (with the help of Carlson Capital) and the CEO was immediately fired.... Even so, the stock price continued to languish and Becker Drapkin ultimately exited in Q4 2013.

One event that would convince me that Becker Drapkin intends to seek board seats and make significant changes in the company culture would be the purchase of FSYS by Carlson Capital. I take this position because the hedge funds have worked together in the past. For the record, Carlson Capital does not have a current position in FSYS (http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1056973/000105697314000021/xslForm13F_X01/XBRL13FInfoTable06302014.xml)

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http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2012/07/16/small-activists-can-have-a-big-bite-too/

http://www.restfinance.com/Restaurant-Finance-Across-America/October-2013/Ruby-Tuesday-Chair-Sells-Stock-Resigns/ )

http://www.marketfolly.com/2011/06/carlson-capital-goes-activist-on-ruby.html

http://www.marketfolly.com/2010/09/hedge-fund-carlson-capital-files.html

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1340786/000119312514321786/d781905dsc13da.htm

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1346543/000095013407018259/d49146e13fvhr.txt