Ackman’s stock debut flounders
HEDGE fund tycoon Bill Ackman saw shares in his listed vehicle Pershing Square fall as much as 11 per cent yesterday in its trading debut in Amsterdam.
Ackman, who founded the Pershing Square hedge fund in 2004, raised $2.7bn from investors earlier this month, after pricing shares at $25 per share.
But shares in the company fell to $22 each yesterday, the second worst debut of a stock in Europe this year.
Ackman, known for his robust investing style, was unrepentant about the price decline yesterday.
“The stock is down, which is good. If it went up, we’d have sold it too low,” he said.
Later in a Bloomberg television interview he said the money raised would be used to fund new deals in the US.
“The cash that we’ve raised we intend to use for a new commitment. So we have a new investment we’re going to announce probably in the next 45 to 60 days, and the capital will go for that new investment,” he said.
Ackman snubbed a listing in London to float the Pershing Square vehicle on the Euronext in Amsterdam.
The vehicle will be used to fund Pershing’s activist investing activities.
Ackman is a well known figure on Wall Street and has been embroiled in high spirited battles with firms ranging from medical supplies firm Herbalife to Botox maker Allergan.