Trump Supporters Icahn, Paulson Score Huge Returns After Election Win

Carl Icahn

Legendary activist investor Carl Icahn has been one of the most vocal supporters of Donald Trump on Wall Street. It was Mr. Trump who first showed his admiration for the octogenarian financier by naming him among the three people that he considered would make good U.S. Treasury Secretaries, last year. Though Mr. Icahn initially said that he would consider the offer, he later backed out from joining Mr. Trump’s economic advisory team, citing his own agenda wherein he is contemplating funding a second Super PAC that will focus on regulatory reforms.

Mr. Icahn’s hedge fund Icahn Capital LP has made large bets in the energy space in the past few quarters, some of which have performed remarkably well after Mr. Trump got elected. According to Icahn Capital LP’s last submitted 13F filing, its US equity portfolio at the end of June was worth $20.27 billion. Although the fund’s portfolio was well diversified across sectors, stocks from the industrials and energy space accounted for 37% and 14% of its value, respectively. Since the election results were announced, the two major notable winners from the fund’s portfolio have been the following two stocks.

CVR Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CVI)

– Shares Owned by Icahn Capital LP (as of June 30): 5.19 Million

– Value of the Holding (as of June 30): $956.22 Million

CVR Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CVI) has been a part of Icahn Capital LP’s equity portfolio since the last quarter of 2011. Although shares of the petroleum refiner have appreciated by nearly 25% since the day after the results were announced, they are still trading down by almost 60% year-to-date. The only respite for CVR Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CVI)’s shareholders this year has been the company’s quarterly dividend, which despite such a massive fall in the stock still hasn’t been lowered from $0.50 per share, which currently translates into a fantastic forward yield of 12.5%.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX)

– Shares Owned by Icahn Capital LP (as of June 30): 5.19 Million

– Value of the Holding (as of June 30): $956.22 Million

2016 was already turning out to be a great year for mining company Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX), but Mr. Trump’s victory has made it even better. Since last Tuesday, Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX)’s stock has registered a gain of 15% and is currently trading up by a whopping 106% in 2016.

Disclosure: None