Bill Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, speaks at the Delivering Alpha conference in New York City on September 28, 2023.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC
Billionaire investor Bill Ackman is selling a 10 percent stake in Pershing Square with the goal of eventually taking his investment firm public.
According to a source familiar with the matter, Ackman’s firm is raising $1.05 billion in a funding round, representing a 10% stake in the management company and implying a valuation of $10.5 billion. The investors in the deal are institutional investors and family offices who wish to remain anonymous, the source said.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the moves. Pershing Square declined to comment.
With the funding round, the hedge fund manager is aiming for an eventual U.S. initial public offering, but it has not yet hired bankers or formally started that process, the source said.
Two years ago, Ackman named Ryan Israel chief investment officer. This was the first time the billionaire hedge fund manager hired someone else to manage the company’s day-to-day investments. Ackman serves as CEO and has ultimate control over decision-making, although he has said that Israel would be his successor at the helm of the company if he were hit by a “pie wagon.”
Pershing Square had $18.6 billion in total assets under management at the end of April. The majority of the capital is in Pershing Square Holdings, a closed-end fund that is traded on European stock exchanges.
Ackman has become one of the world’s best-known hedge fund investors after years of market-leading returns and loud activist campaigns. He also gained a large following on the social media platform with 1.2 million followers
Earlier this year, Ackman announced plans to offer a new investment vehicle listed on the New York Stock Exchange to gain his following among Main Street investors. He is launching a publicly traded closed-end fund that invests in 12 to 24 large-cap, investment-grade, “permanent growth” companies in North America.
The popular investor’s hedge fund held just six stocks at the end of March, including Alphabet, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Hilton Hotels. Last year it recorded an increase of 26.7%.
In 2022, Ackman abandoned activist short selling, a practice that led to one of the most colorful battles in Wall Street history against Herbalife.
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2024-05-31 19:25:48
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