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April 18 (Reuters) - German chemicals distributor Brenntag said on Tuesday that it had taken note of a letter from its shareholder PrimeStone Capital urging changes to its strategy and operations.
"We are in constructive talks with all shareholders," it added in an e-mailed reply to Reuters' request to comment.
Activist investor PrimeStone Capital, which holds a 2% stake in Brenntag, called for a separation of the firm's specialties and essentials units in an open letter issued earlier.
The shareholder also said the company needed a "much stronger focus" on management performance and cost efficiency.
The group said it would provide further details on the setup of the two divisions during a capital markets day in the autumn.
In late 2022,
PrimeStone urged Brenntag
to end takeover talks with U.S. chemicals distributor Univar Solutions and instead to buy back shares and prepare for a break-up into two separate companies.
Univar said in mid-March that private equity firm Apollo Global Management would take it off the market for $8.1 billion.
Brenntag's shares were flat at 08:30 GMT. (Reporting by Alexander Huebner, writing by Andrey Sychev Editing by Madeline Chambers)
