Bill Ackman

Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P.

Last Update: 2013-05-15

Number of Stocks: 10
Number of New Stocks: 1

Total Value: $10,068 Mil
Q/Q Turnover: 2%

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Bill Ackman's Profile & Performance

Profile

William Ackman, co-investment manager for hedge-fund group Gotham Partners LP, formed Pershing Square in November 2003 with $54 million raised from three investors. Ackman got his start in the real estate business, where he worked for his father prior to starting Gotham.

Investing Philosophy

Bill Ackman is an activist investor. He buys the common stocks of public companies, and pushes for changes so that the market can realize the values of the companies. Ackman buys stocks trading at a discount, and sells when the companies reach their appraised value.

Total Holding History

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Performance of Pershing Square LP fund

Year	Return (%)	S&P500 (%)	Excess Gain (%)
2010	29.7	15.06	14.6
2008	-13	-37	24.0

Commentaries and Stories

Currently 3.00/5

Rating: 3.0/5 (2 votes)

Ackman Increases One and Decreases One in the First Quarter

May 16, 2013

During the first quarter of 2013, Guru Bill Ackman bought one new stock, increased his stake in one and decreased another. Ackman’s current portfolio consists of 10 stocks and is valued at $10.068 billion. More...

Currently 3.20/5

Rating: 3.2/5 (5 votes)

Trimming Sails - Bill Ackman Reduces Pacific Shipper MATX

May 16, 2013

Activist investor Bill Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, reduced only one holding in the first quarter of 2013. More...

TRANSPORTATION & LODGING, SHIPPING & PORTS

Currently 1.25/5

Rating: 1.3/5 (4 votes)

Bill Ackman Ira Sohn Presentation - A Rising Tide Is a Good Gamble

May 10, 2013

Bill Ackman believes that Proctor and Gamble (PG) could trade for $125 in two years versus the current share price of $78. More...

Currently 3.57/5

Rating: 3.6/5 (7 votes)

DELL and EBIX: Heads, I Win Now; Tails, I Win Later

May 6, 2013

Yesterday I wrote a piece where I listed the three categories that my investments typically fall into: franchises, cheap and good stocks, and cheap asset stocks. I also described a fourth category called "special situations" that I occasionally participate in when I find an interesting idea. The vast majority of my investments fall into the first three categories, but recently, I've looked at two interesting special situations that have a few similarities. More...

SPECIAL SITUATIONS, ARBITRAGE, INVESTMENT IDEAS

Currently 3.50/5

Rating: 3.5/5 (4 votes)

'Macro Tourist' Trade

April 30, 2013

What do Daniel Loeb and Bill Ackman have in common? Both are well known for their hedge fund activist investing. Loeb in the ensuing years has transitioned from activist to macro hedge fund manager; evident from his stellar return in Greek government bonds and most recently, from the Japan trade (initial currency/index trade). Ackman, despite his recent hiccup in few investments such as J.C. Penney (JCP) and Herbalife (HLF), had also dabbled in macro investing such as in Hong Kong dollar back in 2011. As Ackman put it recently, “The current printing of money is a 'non-sustainable' situation." Hong Kong should adjust is currency peg, he said, and he has a small position essentially shorting it. More...

DAN LOEB, BILL ACKMAN, KYLE BASS

Currently 5.00/5

Rating: 5.0/5 (1 vote)

Forty Minutes With Activist Investor Bill Ackman

April 8, 2013

Reuters sits down with Bill Ackman for a lengthy interview. More...

Currently 2.33/5

Rating: 2.3/5 (3 votes)

Bill Ackman Surprised At "Short Squeeze" Attempt by Hedge Funds on His Herbalife

April 7, 2013

Activist investor Bill Ackman tells Reuters Impact Players host Robert Wolf that his public bet against Herbalife was bound to stir controversy, but Ackman was surprised so many in the hedge fund world tried to put a "short squeeze" against him. More...

Currently 3.29/5

Rating: 3.3/5 (7 votes)

Bill Ackman Interview - Windfall Wachovia Investment, Only A Few Hours Of Research

April 6, 2013

Activist investor Bill Ackman tells Reuters Impact Players host Robert Wolf that while he can take months to painstakingly vet a company before taking a position, one of his best investments, Wachovia, took only four hours of research in the midst of the financial crisis. More...

Currently 5.00/5

Rating: 5.0/5 (4 votes)

Bill Ackman Has Told His Investors That J.C. Penney Is the Biggest Risk in His Portfolio

April 5, 2013

Activist investor Bill Ackman tells Reuters Impact Players host Robert Wolf that CEO Ron Johnson’s tenure at JCPenney is “something very close to a disaster” but a turnaround at the retail giant holds the biggest potential reward for his fund. More...

Currently 2.33/5

Rating: 2.3/5 (3 votes)

The New York Times on Bill Ackman - Investor Activism Gone Wild

April 4, 2013

Joe Nocera and the New York Times published the following op-ed looking into the good and bad sides of hedge fund manager Bill Ackman. More...

Currently 3.00/5

Rating: 3.0/5 (4 votes)

Canadian Pacific Railway - Off the Rails After Ackman

April 2, 2013

A short thesis on Canadian Pacific Rail: More...

Currently 4.77/5

Rating: 4.8/5 (22 votes)

Competence, Margin of Safety or Financial Strength?

March 31, 2013

CRITERIA, CHECKLIST

Currently 3.71/5

Rating: 3.7/5 (24 votes)

JC Penney - Maximum Pessimism?

March 27, 2013

If you go to Yahoo Finance and search for headlines of J.C. Penney (JCP), chances are you will not see many positive headlines. In fact, you probably don't even need to go to Yahoo Finance — the popular media and Wall Street analysts have been nothing but negative about the outlook for J.C. Penney. Below are a few quotes: More...

JCP

Currently 1.33/5

Rating: 1.3/5 (9 votes)

What to Make of J.C. Penney (JCP)?

March 18, 2013

Be sure to check out our detailed stock analysis (click here). Time appears to be running short for current J.C. Penney (JCP) CEO Ron Johnson, possibly as short as 10 months. Recent reports reveal concerns that the retailer's board of directors is restless and may only give Johnson until the end of 2013 to right the J.C. Penney ship. But is Penney even a good long-term investment? More...

Currently 4.67/5

Rating: 4.7/5 (3 votes)

Bill Ackman Provides a New 'Short Herbalife' Presentation - March 13, 2013

March 14, 2013

Herbalife Side by Side a Comparison of Fortune Hi Tech Marketing and Herbalife 3.14.13 More...

Currently 2.33/5

Rating: 2.3/5 (3 votes)

Markets Get a Lift from ADP Numbers and J.C. Penney's Stock Makes New Lows

March 6, 2013

U.S. markets are now making new highs with the Dow closing at a new record. The S&P 500 is not too far behind. Markets will get a chance to make new intraday highs after employment firm ADP said the private sector added 198,000 in February. Economists polled by Reuters were expecting 170,000 new jobs. Official numbers from the Labor Department will be released on Friday. More...

Currently 3.00/5

Rating: 3.0/5 (7 votes)

Why The Hedge Fund Community Does Not Like Bill Ackman

March 2, 2013

Bill Ackman might have a couple of billion dollars, but he doesn't seem to have a lot of friends in the hedge fund community. More...

Bill Ackman, Herbalife

Currently 4.67/5

Rating: 4.7/5 (3 votes)

Vanity Fair's Story on Bill Ackman, Featuring Bike-Ride Meltdown

February 28, 2013

Editor’s Note: There is as much ego as money behind Dan Loeb and Bill Ackman’s battle over the nutritional company Herbalife (HLF). The story of their cycling trip from Bridgehampton to Montauk, which has practically achieved urban-legend status in the hedge-fund eco-system, provides a vivid example of what is at stake for the two former friends. Vanity Fair contributing editor William D. Cohan gets Ackman's response on the ride in a story on the rivals that will appear in the April issue. Read an excerpt here—the full story will be released next week. More...

Currently 1.71/5

Rating: 1.7/5 (7 votes)

J.C. Penney's Turnaround Not Quite Turning

February 28, 2013

U.S. market continued their climb on Wednesday and are now close to all time highs. We will see if the sequester and recent economic data will put an end to that. Prior to the opening bell, reports showed the U.S. economy barely grew 0.1% in the fourth quarter. The growth rate was the slowest since the first quarter of 2011 amid lower military spending which is expected to reverse in the first quarter. More...