Carl Icahn News Trends: Apple Inc. (AAPL) Shares, Twitter Movement, Dell Inc. (DELL) & More

Editor’s Note: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL), News Corp (NASDAQ:NWSA), Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:FRX)

Icahn says bought more Apple stock as shares fell: CNBC (Reuters)
Activist investor Carl Icahn said he bought more shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) on Wednesday as the company’s stock price slid. “At these levels, we’re buying quite a bit of stock,” Icahn told cable television network CNBC. He added that his investment firm “bought quite a bit today” as Apple shares traded in a range of $465-467 per share. Icahn did not say how many additional shares of Apple he bought on Wednesday when Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares fell 5.4 percent to $467.71. The drop extended a 2.3 percent decline during the previous session after the company unveiled new iPhone models. “Apple is one of my best right now,” Icahn told CNBC.

Carl Icahn - Icahn Capital Lp

Carl Icahn is excited about Twitter. (The Next Web)
Activist investor Carl Icahn told The Wall Street Journal that he’s excited about Twitter. That might seem counter-intuitive coming from a man that has just 20 tweets, but Icahn believes the platform has the potential to raise awareness among shareholders about problems with the corporate governance system and even lead to legislative reform. Icahn started tweeting in June while in the midst of a battle with Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) founder Michael Dell over the future of the PC maker and has since attracted over 77,000 followers. Earlier on Monday, Icahn tweeted that he was giving up his fight against Michael Dell and Silver Lake.

Southeastern Buys Second-Largest Voting Stake in News Corp. (3) (Businessweek)
Southeastern Asset Management Inc., the investment firm that joined Carl Icahn in opposing Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL)’s buyout, acquired a 12 percent voting stake in News Corp (NASDAQ:NWSA), making it the largest shareholder after Chairman Rupert Murdoch. The 23.8 million-share Class B stake, disclosed in a regulatory filing yesterday, is valued at about $397 million, based on a closing price of $16.72. The investment accounts for about a 4.1 percent economic interest in New York-based News Corp., the publishing business split off in June from Murdoch’s film and television division.

Carl Icahn Ends Takeover Battle for PC Maker Dell (CIO Today)
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is giving up his bitter takeover fight for Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) a few days before shareholders are scheduled to consider the latest buyout offer from the struggling computer Relevant Products/Services maker’s founder Michael Dell. Icahn said Monday in a letter to shareholders that he still thinks Michael Dell’s bid to take his company private undervalues the business and freezes shareholders out of any future gains. But Icahn also said it would be “almost impossible” to defeat that offer in a vote scheduled for Thursday.

Changing of the guard at Forest Labs placates Icahn — for now (MarketWatch)
A change at the top for antidepressant drug maker Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:FRX) seems to have placated activist investor Carl Icahn and put the company on the road toward relative calm — at least for a while. Icahn initiated an unsuccessful proxy fight against the company two years ago after acquiring more than 9% of its shares, saying Forest had squandered a large chunk of its value during the past decade. Forest reached a closing peak of $77.59 in January 2004 and has slid ever since. It was marginally up for the day at the close to $43.56.

Icahn: ‘Apple is just a no brainer’ (CNBC.com)