Carl Icahn speaks at Delivering Alpha on September 13, 2016 in New York.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
Shares in Carl Icahn’s conglomerate Icahn Enterprises fell again on Wednesday after a disclosure that regulators were seeking information about its corporate governance.
The stock was down 20% in early trading after falling nearly 25% last week. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York contacted Icahn Enterprises last Wednesday seeking information on corporate governance, capitalization, securities offerings, dividends, valuations, marketing materials, due diligence and other materials, according to a regulatory filing.
The regulator sought information a day after prominent short seller Hindenburg Research took a short position in Icahn’s company. Hindenburg claimed last Tuesday to “inflate” asset valuations, among other reasons, because the publicly traded holding company’s stock is said to carry an unusually high premium to net asset value.
Icahn Enterprises
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office has made no claims or charges against us or Mr. Icahn in connection with the investigation described above,” Icahn said in the 10-Q filing. “We believe we maintain a strong compliance program and while we cannot make any assurances and we are still evaluating the matter, we currently believe this investigation will not have a material impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flow.”
Icahn is the most famous corporate raider in history, rising to fame after his hostile takeover of TWA Airlines and divestiture of its assets in the 1980s.Recently, the billionaire investor got involved in activist investing McDonald’s and biotech companies illumination.
Headquartered in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, Icahn Enterprises is a holding company with investments in a variety of industries including energy, automotive, food packaging, metals and real estate.
Last week, in response to the Hindenburg report, Icahn said in a statement that the short-seller’s report was “solely” designed to profit from its short positions at the expense of Icahn Enterprises’ long-term stakeholders. .
“We stand by our public disclosures, and we believe the performance of the IEP will continue to prove itself over the long term,” Icahn said last week. “We continue to believe that activism is the best example of investing, and my 25 years of activist investing have exemplified that very well.”
shares Icahn Enterprises It is down more than 35% so far this year.
