SCOTT FERGUSON
The Bill Ackman protege who left Pershing Square to build Sachem Head into a multibillion-dollar activist fund.
Scott Ferguson learned activism at the feet of Bill Ackman, then walked out to do it his own way. He founded Sachem Head in 2012 and grew it to roughly $3.9 billion. His trick is being the polite one in a room full of bomb-throwers. He names his campaigns after the Connecticut peninsula where he grew up, then quietly wins board seats at names like US Foods and Elanco.
Net Worth
Undisclosed
Nationality
American
Time Horizon
Medium-Term
Risk Appetite
7 / 10
Fund
Sachem Head Capital Management LP
CAREER & BACKGROUND
Ferguson graduated from Stanford in 1996 and went straight to McKinsey as a consultant. He did private equity at American Industrial Partners, then earned a Harvard MBA in 2003.
His real break came when he joined Bill Ackman's Pershing Square as its first investment hire, before the fund had even launched. He spent nine years there learning how to pressure companies from the inside.
In 2012 he left to start Sachem Head Capital Management, named after a coastal spot in Guilford, Connecticut. The fund grew to about $3.9 billion by early 2023.
He has run campaigns at Autodesk, Olin, Whitbread, CDK Global, Elanco Animal Health, US Foods, and Performance Food Group. He served on the US Foods board from 2022 to 2024 after a bruising proxy fight.
COMPANIES & ROLES
Sachem Head Capital Management, formerly Pershing Square Capital Management
INVESTING STYLE & PHILOSOPHY
Ferguson buys big stakes in companies he thinks are underperforming, then pushes hard for change. He wants board seats, better cost control, and clearer strategy.
The plain-English version is he buys the stock, then tries to fix the company so the stock goes up. Fortune once called him less combative than other activists, and that is the point.
He often starts as a quiet, passive shareholder for years before going loud. When he does move, he comes with a detailed plan and specific profit targets, not just complaints.
THE PLAYBOOK
Risk Approach
Activist investing is concentrated by nature, so Ferguson bets big on a handful of names. That is riskier than a spread-out fund.
But he cushions it by doing deep homework first and often owning the stock long before he agitates.
Money Habits
Ferguson is famously low-key for a hedge fund founder. He named his firm after Sachem Head, the Connecticut peninsula where he grew up, which tells you he is sentimental, not flashy.
He sits on the board of the Henry Street Settlement, a New York social services nonprofit, and is part of the Robin Hood Foundation's leadership council. His public profile is his 13D filings and conference talks, not his lifestyle.
In an industry built on ego, he mostly lets the returns and the board seats do the talking.
BIGGEST WIN
Sachem Head's Elanco Animal Health campaign is a signature move. Ferguson took a stake in the pet and livestock health company and pushed for operational fixes and a cleaner strategy.
His US Foods campaign also paid off. He built a stake worth roughly $750 million, argued the company could add $300 million in profit over Wall Street estimates, and won board seats in 2022 after a hard fight.
He then sat on the board for two years to make sure the plan actually happened.
BIGGEST MISTAKE
Not every campaign lands cleanly. His 2015 push at Autodesk, the design-software maker, turned into a long grind rather than a quick win, and taught the market that Ferguson plays the long game.
Replacing a CEO, he has admitted, is one of the hardest jobs an activist can take on. The lesson across his losses is the same.
Agitating is easy, but actually improving how a company runs takes years, not a press release.
FINANCIAL PHILOSOPHY
Ferguson believes most underperforming companies are stuck because boards do not hold management accountable. Fix the accountability and the value shows up.
He treats activism as a tool to unlock value, not a bloodsport. He would rather settle for a board seat than run a scorched-earth campaign.
His core belief is that a good operating plan plus the right people equals a higher stock price.
FAMILY & PERSONAL LIFE
Ferguson grew up in Guilford, Connecticut, near the Sachem Head peninsula that gave his fund its name. He keeps his personal and family life private.
EDUCATION
Ferguson earned an A.B. in Public Policy from Stanford University in 1996.
He later got an MBA from Harvard Business School in 2003. The Stanford-McKinsey-Harvard-Pershing Square path is a classic elite investor pipeline, and it put him in the room with Bill Ackman right as Pershing Square was starting.
BOOKS & RESOURCES
No book of his own
Ferguson is best understood as a Bill Ackman disciple, so anyone curious about his playbook should study Pershing Square's activist campaigns and read up on the mechanics of shareholder activism
QUOTES (3)
We have consistently sought to reach a constructive resolution with US Foods, but the Board's unwillingness to engage with us and make serious counteroffers have led us to this point.
We believe that the Company's failure to achieve its potential is the result of a Board that has not held management accountable.
Our numerous offers reflect our attempt to be open-minded, adapt to a dynamic situation and potentially reach a settlement that works for all parties.
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Related Profiles
Investors
Bill Ackman
Ferguson was Pershing Square's first investment hire and learned activism directly from Ackman before founding Sachem Head.
Carl Icahn
Icahn is the original activist archetype Ferguson's softer, plan-driven style deliberately contrasts with.
Nelson Peltz
Both are activist investors who win board seats and push operational change at large companies.
Head-to-Head
Compare Scott Ferguson vs another investor.