Activist Fivespan has a stake in Qiagen. Here are 3 levers to boost the company’s growth and improve value

Qiagen NV is a Netherlands -incorporated life sciences tools firm, dual-listed in the U.S. and Germany .

Fivespan Partners , LP is a San Francisco -based investment firm founded by Dylan Haggart and Sarah Coyne .

The firm prefers behind-the-scenes, collaborative and amicable activism, but would resort to a proxy fight if it had no other choice.

Qiagen has lost sight of the core business, investing a lot in the diagnostics business.

There are three levers to create shareholder value here.

Management should invest in and around its core business to accelerate growth.

Qiagen can be run a lot tighter, leaving room for margin expansion.

The company has $1.15 billion of cash and short-term investments.