Bill Ackman turned the knife on old rival Carl Icahn on Wednesday with a side attack that challenged the valuation of the famous activist investor’s flagship firm, whose company was shortlisted by Hindenburg Research.
In a withering and lengthy Twitter post, Ackman wrote that he was “fascinated” by the situation between the short seller and Icahn Enterprises (IEP), while also noting that the company’s bonus was maintained due to a big dividend yield.
“The profit is generated by the return of capital to outside shareholders, which is in turn funded by the company selling shares to investors,” Ackman said, adding that the system is heavily depending on “maintaining Icahn’s premium and peace of mind.” S).”
Ackman, founder and CEO of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management, said the situation put Icahn’s fund in danger.
“The $IEP jogs my memory a little bit of Archegos, where the swap counterparties were comforted by the proven fact that each had relatively less exposure to the situation,” Ackman said, referring to Bill Hwang’s 2021 company that blew up.
“It only takes one lender to interrupt ranks and liquidate stocks or try to hedge before the house collapses,” he added. “Here, patsy is the last lender to liquidate.”
Icahn Enterprises shares have fallen greater than 50% since the release of the Hindenburg report on May 2.
Shares fell greater than 13% on Wednesday, hitting their lowest level in greater than 14 years.
Icahn personally lost $15 billion – reducing his net value from $25 billion to $10 billion.
The scathing Twitter post left Icahn stunned, The Post came upon.
“I do not know what to make of it,” Icahn told The Post shortly after the tweet was posted.
Icahn, 87, declined to elucidate why Ackman made such a public attack, suggesting he might issue a press release later.
A spokesman for Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management fund declined to comment further.
Ackman ended the tweet by referring to considered one of Icahn’s favorite sayings: “When you desire a friend, get a dog.”
Then Icahn’s nemesis went a step further: “Icahn has made many enemies in his illustrious profession. I do not know if he has real friends. He could use one here.
The short sale report indicated that the current dividend yield for Icahn’s company is amongst the richest on Wall Street at 15 percent.
Icahn vowed to fight Hindenburg, who accused IEP of overvaluing its shares and counting on a “Ponzi-like” structure to pay dividends.
Icahn called the Hindenburg report “self-serving” and reiterated his defense of the company.
“When you’re going to care, you should not be on this business,” Icahn told Bloomberg on Tuesday.
On May 10, the IEP said it had been contacted by U.S. prosecutors and reported a surprise quarterly loss in the first quarter.
The bad blood between the tycoons dates back to 20 years after a dispute over a 2003 deal with Hallwood Realty.
The situation gained momentum in 2013, when Ackman and Icahn got into an infamous argument on CNBC, during which each men threw insults. Ackman lost money on his $1 billion short bet against Icahn’s Herbalife.
“He is not a man who keeps his word. It is a guy who takes advantage of little people,” Ackman said of Icahn at the time.
The 2 apparently buried the hatchet a 12 months later after they were photographed cuddling at an investor conference.