New Activist Xerox Investor Urges Sale of Key Business Unit to ‘Unlock Value,’ Reduce Debt

The last time an activist investor sought to make big changes at Xerox began in early 2018, when investors Carl Icahn and the late Darwin Deason tried to block a planned $6.1 billion merger with Fujifilm. The result of their efforts was the ouster of the Xerox CEO, and a severing of Xerox’s relationship with Fujifilm, which resulted in Xerox selling its interest in Fuji Xerox. Fujifilm then became the majority owner of Fuji Xerox and renamed it Fujifilm Business Innovation. 

Icahn has since sold his shares in Xerox back to Xerox, while the Deason estate retains a small minority interest. 

There’s a new activist investor at Xerox however. Prague-based investment firm STARTEEPO SICAV, one of Xerox’s largest investors, is urging a strategic review of Xerox Financial Services (XFS), which finances customer equipment purchases, including a potential sale of all or part of XFS. It estimates that XFS is worth between $1.3 billion and $1.5 billion.

While STARTEEPO isn’t a majority investor at Xerox, it is one Xerox’s largest and most prominent institutional investors. As of its latest disclosure, STARTEEPO holds a 7.34 percent, which is second to the top Xerox investor, BlackRock, Inc., which holds the the top position at about 7.45 to 8.07 percent.

STARTEEPO believes XFS could be worth $7.69 per share, which is more than double Xerox’s current share price ($3.32 as of today). It also says a sale could help reduce Xerox’s debt leverage.

More Progress Needed

STARTEEPO believes that Xerox’s second quarter results demonstrate that solid progress is being made at the company on every metric. Despite this progress, however, it says Xerox remains misunderstood and undervalued by the market.

However, it says XFX’s value is hidden in Xerox’s financial disclosures because it is included in the “Print and Other” reporting segment, which obscures the income earned from fees, servicing, and renewals.

It believes Xerox first needs to help investors better understand and properly value XFS by providing greater detail regarding it, including its receivables, funding, spread, credit performance, and return on equity.

It advises that Xerox should also clearly communicate its strategy no later than in its third-quarter earnings, including perspectives from the Xerox CEO and CFO on the current strategy for XFS, the expected trajectory of finance receivables, and the role of the business within Xerox. 

STARTEEPO also urges the Xerox board to hire financial advisors to undertake a formal strategic review of the XFS business, evaluating all available paths to unlock value. 

It says options to consider include, but are not limited to, a joint venture, strategic capital partnership, alternative funding structures, partial monetization, or a sale of some or all of the business.

STARTEEPO’s complete presentation is available here. 

Our Take

Xerox will likely agree to provide clearer financial reporting for XFS. However, the board will almost certainly push back against a rapid, full divestiture of XFS. Xerox relies on XFS to bundle equipment financing into its core enterprise printing contracts. Completely selling the unit could disrupt customer retention and hardware sales.

The board can also argue that not only are the company’s financial metrics improving, but it’s proactively reduced its total debt outstanding by more than $200 million, so a “fire sale” of XFS to manage their 2028 debt maturities isn’t necessary.

If STARTEEPO manages to get top investor Blackrock on its side, however, that would give it considerable leverage.

More Resources

• September 2026: This Week in Imaging: Inside the Xerox-Lexmark Merger: Latest Insights
• August 2026: Xerox Discusses Three Main Challenges, Plus 9-Series for Mid-Range Cost-Competitiveness and Surging Entry-Level Demand
• August 2026: Xerox Reports on First-Half Layoffs, Booming Supplies Revenue
• July 2026: Xerox  Returns to Profitability, Reports Strong Revenue Growth, Raises Forecast