A new activist hedge fund, Irenic Capital Management, has reportedly built a stake in Bristol-based Barnes Group Inc. and is exploring a possible sale of all or part of the company, Bloomberg reported Friday.
Irenic is asking the aerospace manufacturer to make changes to its board of directors and pursue a strategic review, according to the publication.
Irenic told management it believes Barnes could garner up to $60 per share in a sale, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. Its share price Friday afternoon was trading at $29.19. Â
Barnes is the first public company to be targeted by Irenic, which was founded last year by Adam Katz, a former executive at Elliott Investment Management, and Andy Dodge, formerly of Indaba Capital Management.
Barnes Group has gone through a number of changes this year including in leadership.
In July, the company also announced it planned to close the production operations at its Engineered Components facility in Bristol. That announcement came a week after Barnes’ aerospace unit disclosed plans  to expand its maintenance and repair facility in East Granby.
Barnes Group declined to comment on the Bloomberg report.Â
