2024-02-20 18:13:35 ET
Veteran activist investor Carl Icahn's latest involvement in the airline industry deepened on Tuesday. His Icahn Enterprises (NASDAQ: IEP) successfully installed two of its executives on JetBlue 's (NASDAQ: JBLU) board of directors. That news was encouraging enough to send Icahn Enterprises's stock into positive territory; it closed the day 1.5% higher, in contrast to the 0.6% slump of the S&P 500 index.
After market hours on Friday, JetBlue announced the two appointments in a press release. Icahn Enterprises general counsel Jesse Lynn and Steven Miller, portfolio manager of the company's Icahn Capital subsidiary, will initially serve as non-voting observers on JetBlue's board. They will become full voting members following the airline 's annual shareholders meeting this spring.
Icahn, known for being a wily and at times very successful activist investor, and his troops are acting fast with JetBlue. News of the board appointments came only three days after Icahn divulged in a regulatory filing that he had amassed a stake of just under 10% in the air carrier.
For further details see:
Why Icahn Enterprises Stock Rose on a Down Tuesday for the Market