Herbalife: Ackman vs. Icahn
As an investor relations professional, there is nothing more interesting going on now than the public drama surrounding the activist attack on Herbalife. To remind you, Pershing Square Capital Management’s Bill Ackman conducted a highly public attack against Herbalife with a 300-plus page slide presentation, going short nearly a billion dollars. Management then countered with a three-hour long investor meeting to rebut and explain the company’s side of the story.
Meanwhile, activist investor Dan Loeb goes long, purchasing nearly 8% of the company. And If the battle of activist titans could not get any more interesting, I recently listened to Carl Icahn and Bill Ackman bickering for nearly 30 minutes on CNBC, with Herabilife as a backdrop.
Perhaps the candid nature and public name calling took the reporter back a little, because he was reduced to a bystander, but Icahn never let on if he was long or short Herbalife – not that he would.
— Matt Sheldon, msheldon@pondel.com
