We first discussed the idea that Ebay(EBAY) might spin off PayPal nearly four years ago, on October 28, 2010. More recently, the company and CEO John Donahoe repeatedly resisted withering attacks from legendary activist investor Carl Icahn, who began pushing for the spinoff early this year. Today, the company has reversed course, and announced that it will spin… Read More »
In an slightly under the radar move, Transocean (RIG) announced that it was creating a new entity, Caledonia Offshore Drilling Company, which will be comprised of eight North Sea midwater rigs. Given the location, it actually sounds like a reasonable name choice. Wow. The rigs under consideration are all from the 70’s and 80’s and would possibly include… Read More »
That didn’t take long. Just a month after first publicizing his position, Carl Icahn fired another salvo in his campaign to break off PayPal from EBay (EBAY). Mr. Icahn sent an open letter to EBay shareholders informing them that he has uncovered ‘multiple lapses in corporate governance’ at the company and that ‘the complete disregard for accountability at eBay is… Read More »
With his public battle over Dell finished, Carl Ichan didn’t take too long in drumming up a new target. The famous corporate raider is now pushing eBay (EBAY) to spin off its online transaction business, PayPal, and submitted this idea for a non-binding vote at an upcoming shareholder meeting. Along with a spinoff, Mr. Icahn is also seeking… Read More »
After a few stops in Australia, the international spinoff (or demerger as the rest of the world calls them) tour continues in Europe with Metso’s (OTC:MXCYY) recent separation of its pulp, paper and power business. The demerger was registered on December 31st and shares in the new company, Valmet Corporation (HLSE:VALMT), began trading on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki… Read More »
13F season is always fun as it provides a rare (albeit delayed) glimpse into the thinking of large money managers and hedge funds. Of course, due to the significant time lag (~45 days), the exclusion of certain securities (shorts, derivatives etc.) and varying investment strategies and holding periods, the usefulness of such data is…questionable in many cases. Not… Read More »
You can’t win them all. Activist investor Carl Icahn suffered another defeat yesterday in his war on the Oshkosh Corporation (OSK) as only 22% of shareholders agreed to his tender offer. As you will recall (or if you don’t, check out our earlier pieces here and here), Mr. Icahn wanted the company to spin off its lift equipment… Read More »
Maybe life isn’t so easy for corporate activists these days. After acquiring a ~9.5% stake in specialty truck maker Oshkosh Corporation (OSK), Carl Icahn has so far been unsuccessful in his push for a spinoff of lift equipment maker JLG. Even after his slate of directors lost at the most recent election, Mr. Icahn has not given up… Read More »
Carl Icahn is not a patient man, but he also doesn’t easily give up. Throughout his storied career, he has profited from forcing companies to make tough decisions to unlock value. Icahn, who owns 9.64% of Oshkosh Corporation(OSK), lost a bruising proxy battle for six seats in January. At the time he had urged the company to reverse… Read More »
Ah, to be an activist investor. Push around executives, demand ‘shareholder friendly’ measures and all this while maintaining the flexibility of trading in and out of shares. After pushing hard for a breakup, Carl Icahn quickly rang the register on a chunk of his Motorola Mobility (MMI) stake shortly after its takeout announcement. Too much work? John Paulson… Read More »
Activist investors appear to be back and are once again using their clout to influence corporate decision making. Occasionally, this can lead to a spinoff such as the case with Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square and Fortune Brands (FO) or Carl Icahn and Motorola. Of course, not every company is looking for outside ‘advice’. Consider the recent news regarding… Read More »