H.B. Fuller (FUL) shareholder Engine Capital said Friday that Ancora's proposal to acquire the company's Building Adhesive Solutions business is a "positive development," and urged the company's board to engage with it "seriously."

On Wednesday, Ancora offered to acquire H.B. Fuller's Building Adhesive Solutions division for between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion in cash.

Engine Capital, which owns a 2% stake in H.B. Fuller, said the board should run two parallel processes: a genuine market check for the division to determine whether Ancora's offer represents full and fair value, and a market check for the company as a whole to compare a division sale followed by a standalone path with a sale of the entire company.

Engine Capital said H.B. Fuller's standalone plan now carries significant operational and financial risks, with management simultaneously handling the integration of a large debt-funded cross-border acquisition, an accelerated deleveraging plan, and the ongoing Project Quantum Leap restructuring program.