Insiders

Ackman to join Canadian Pacific CEO in defense of rail deal

December 07, 2015 at 05:27 pm EST

(Reuters) - When Canadian Pacific (>> Canadian Pacific Railway Limited) CEO Hunter Harrison lays out his case for a takeover of railway peer Norfolk Southern Corp, (>> Norfolk Southern Corp.) he will have unusual company in the form of the railroad's biggest shareholder, activist investor William Ackman.

Canadian Pacific said on Monday that Ackman, who sits on its board of directors and whose $14.8 billion hedge fund firm Pershing Square Capital Management owns a 9.1 percent stake, would take part in a teleconference with the investment community on Tuesday together with Harrison and his top executives.

Four days ago, Norfolk Southern rejected Canadian Pacific's $28 billion acquisition offer, arguing that regulators would reject a deal and that it would cost the company revenue and "harm" the communities it serves.

Ackman handpicked Harrison as CEO after winning a bitter proxy contest at Canadian Pacific in 2012. He has never participated before in any teleconference hosted by the company.

Ackman is no stranger, however, to conference calls or presentations to support an investment thesis. In late October, he spoke for four hours supporting his investment in Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc (>> Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc) after the drugmaker's pricing and accounting practices attracted criticism.

But 2015 is on course to be a terrible year for the billionaire investor, with Pershing Square off 17 percent during the first 11 months after having gained 40 percent in 2014.

(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss in Boston; editing by Grant McCool)

Stocks treated in this article : Norfolk Southern Corp., Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc, Canadian Pacific Railway Limited

Stocks mentioned in the article

Add to a list Add to a list 0 selected To use this feature you must be a member Log in Sign up	Price	Change	5d. change	Capi.
NORFOLK SOUTHERN CORPORATION	239.8 USD	-0.44%	-0.81%	54.41B
BAUSCH HEALTH COMPANIES INC	32.25 CAD	-0.62%	+7.20%	3.16B
CANADIAN PACIFIC KANSAS CITY LIMITED	111.6 CAD	-0.50%	-4.16%	76.35B

William Ackman

William (Bill) Ackman is the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, an American hedge fund that holds shares in Wendy’s International and McDonald’s Corporation. As well it has interest in Target Corp., the second largest discount company in US.

Graduated at Harvard College, he holds also an MBA from Harvard Business School. He began his career working for his father in the real estate, and in 1993 he founded Gotham Partners Management Co. This investment company encounters some troubles including legal problems that will lead to its dissolution in 2003.

In 2004, William Ackman comes back on the financial stage. He has created Pershing Square Capital, and he showed a lot of activism buying massive share in the lowest price for resale in two years maximum. A short-term strategy often criticized by the US Medias. His different attacks against FSA, American division of Dexia, and also against MBIA and Ambac, that it forecast the collapse, earned him a strong enmity in financial world.

In 2007, William Ackman took a share up to 5 millions of dollar (3,5%) in Sears Holdings, third group in distribution sector in US, behind Wal-Mart and Home Depot.

Pershing Square Capital Management manages approximately 2.4 billion of dollar of which 40% was invested in shares of McDonald.

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