Corporate raider Carl Icahn may be riding a new wave today, his 88thth birthday. JetBlue Airways announced Friday it has reached a deal to give seats on the company’s board of directors to two representatives of Icahn’s companies. The lightning-quick agreement with JetBlue comes just days after utility American Electric Power said it had reached an agreement with Icahn to place two of his representatives on its board of directors.
At JetBlue, Icahn disclosed his 9.9% stake on Monday, the same day new CEO Joanna Geraghty took the job. On the same day, AEP announced a deal with Icahn. His stakes in two companies – and wins – marked a public return to his threadbare activist investing background after he weathered criticism from short-sellers Hindenburg Research last year and promised investors he would stick to what he does best: agitation for change in the boardroom or CEO role and unlocking value for shareholders.
In a joint statement, Geraghty said the company was working to restore its earnings power. The airline is in crisis after a federal judge struck down the JetBlue-Spirit Airlines merger a month ago.
JetBlue shares rose 16% when Icahn disclosed his stake this week and 5.9% in after-hours trading following the announcement. Bloomberg reported.
“We are implementing over $300 million in revenue growth initiatives this year and are on track to achieve significant cost savings through our structured cost program, fleet modernization and cost base reduction,” Geraghty said, adding that JetBlue welcomes “the contributions of our new board members as we move toward this shared goal.”
Icahn said he values ”constructive engagement” with JetBlue’s board and senior management.
“We very much look forward to working with them in the future,” he said.
JetBlue has named Icahn Enterprises general counsel Jesse Lynn and Icahn Capital portfolio manager Stephen Miller, the company said in a release. innings with the SEC. Lynn has served on the boards of directors of Crown Holdings, FirstEnergy and Xerox. Miller is a member of the board of directors of Dana Incorporated, Bausch Health Companies, and previously served on the board of directors of Xerox.
JetBlue Chairman Peter Bonparte said Lynn and Miller will provide “helpful insights” to the board as the company charts a path to growth. The two new board members will be nonvoting observers when they join the board on Feb. 26 and will not have voting rights until after this year’s annual meeting of shareholders.
Meanwhile, Icahn’s $120 million stake in AEP gave seats on the board of directors of Icahn Enterprises to Hunter Gary, who joined AEP’s board of directors along with Henry Linginfelter, former executive vice president of Southern Company Gas.