Activist investor Elliott has acquired a significant stake in RWE AG and is urging the German company's management to launch a stock buyback program, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The full size of Elliott's stake could not be immediately known, the report added.
Frankfurt-listed RWE shares turned positive following the report and were up 0.6% at 1803 GMT.
Last month, Germany considered whether it could require investors to disclose a 3% stake comprising a mix of stocks and derivatives after Italy's UniCredit acquired a large stake in Germany's Commerzbank.
The buybacks have been a major sticking point for RWE investors who have pressed its management to clarify the matter during a call on its final annual results in March.
Then, in May, Chief Financial Officer Michael Mueller gave the clearest signal yet by indicating that the company might consider returning cash to investors through buybacks.
In 2023, RWE rejected a motion filed by activist fund ENKRAFT against the power company's plan to seek permission from shareholders to issue convertible bonds without giving existing investors the opportunity to subscribe.
Elliott did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while RWE declined to comment.
