Activist Filings, Oct 26–27, 2026: A Chairman Goes After His Own Board
Short version: Five Schedule 13D/A amendments hit EDGAR on October 26 and 27. Two are real pressure campaigns, one is a company selling stock to its majority owner, and two are mostly ownership housekeeping. The most interesting is at TON Strategy, where the executive chairman is the one writing the angry letter.
I read each filing on EDGAR. Every number below comes from the filing itself, linked at the end of each item. This is a short window, not a "best of the week," so treat it as a look at what came in, not a ranking. If you're new to the form, start with what a Schedule 13D is and how to read the purpose section.
TON Strategy (TONX): the executive chairman writes his own board
Manuel Stotz, with affiliated funds, reports 12,091,720 shares, about 21.96% of the company. He got in through the company's August 2025 private placement and was made Executive Chairman as part of that deal. The company then began buying and staking Gram (formerly Toncoin) as a treasury strategy.
On October 27 the group sent the board an open letter, attached to the filing as Exhibit 4. The filing says they believe the stock trades at a significant discount to the estimated treasury asset value per share, and that larger and faster buybacks would help close it. It also voices concern about the board's engagement on capital allocation, leadership, strategy, and communication with stockholders.
The reservation of rights is the part to watch. The filing says they may seek board changes, nominate directors for the 2027 annual meeting or a special meeting, and solicit proxies. Stotz is a sitting director, so this is an insider fight, not an outside activist showing up. Filing
PodcastOne (PODC): Galloway asks for a sale process
Galloway Capital Partners, run by Bruce Galloway, reports 893,000 shares, 2.95% of the 30,252,696 shares outstanding as of August 12, 2026. Item 4 says they sent a letter to the Executive Chairman arguing the stock is undervalued against its revenue and intrinsic value, and urging management to hire an investment bank or advisor to explore a sale, merger, or acquisition.
At under 3% this is a small stake, so the letter is the leverage, not the share count. Filing
Dogwood Therapeutics (DWTX): the majority owner buys $5 million of new stock
This one looks like activity but isn't activism. On October 26, Sealbond Limited bought 4,098,360 newly issued shares from Dogwood at $1.22, about $5 million, paid from working capital. Sealbond now holds 25,920,693 shares (67.8%). With affiliate Conjoint, parent CK Life Sciences reports 28,763,331 shares, 75.2%, on 38,227,913 shares outstanding.
When a controlling holder funds the company this way, the stake grows because new shares were created, not because anyone bought from the market. Filing
XCF Global (SAFX): Ladnier's group at 45.3%
EEME Energy SPV I holds 228,897,417.6 Class A shares, 38.3%. Majique Ladnier controls EEME and two related vehicles, bringing her reported total to 270,564,515.6 shares, 45.3%. One of the vehicles also has the right to acquire warrants for up to $99 million of additional shares through December 31, 2026.
The filing says the reporting persons have no plans in the Item 4 categories right now, while reserving the right to act later. So this is a large holder reporting its position, with no stated campaign. Filing
Elastic (ESTC): Pictet sells down to 4.9%
Pictet Asset Management now reports 5,217,779 shares of Elastic, about 4.92% of the class, so it has slipped under the 5% line. The filing lists open-market sales going back to October 20, including 253,287 shares at $106.06 on October 26. Pictet describes the stake as held for institutional clients and says it engages with management on strategy and governance, but it also says it has no plans that would change control of the company. This is a long-time institutional holder trimming, not a campaign. Filing
What to take from it
Only TON Strategy and PodcastOne contain a clear ask. The pressure at TON Strategy comes from inside the boardroom, which is rarer and harder for a board to wave off. The other three are worth knowing about and nothing more: a controlling holder funding its company, a large holder reporting its position, and a fund trimming. We don't have Form 4 insider-trade or short-interest checks on these five in this write-up, so we make no claim about either.