Icahn Takes Stake in Canadian Oil Company

Commodities & Metals

Published: October 8, 2013 7:45 am

Last Updated: April 27, 2020 11:26 pm

After markets closed on Monday night, activist investor Carl Icahn disclosed that he had accumulated a stake of nearly 6% in Canadian independent oil and gas exploration and production company Talisman Energy Inc. (NYSE: TLM). The total value of Icahn’s investment is around $300 million.

Talisman’s current enterprise value is about $18.4 billion and includes about $5.2 billion in debt. To make some serious money on his investment, Icahn will have to convince Talisman to rationalize its assets. The company has leases in North America, the North Sea, North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. If that looks like a lack of focus to you, imagine what it looks like to Icahn.

While it is unlikely that he can force Talisman to sell the entire company, it is certainly possible that he could speed up a sell-off of assets that are not contributing to the company’s performance. A good place to start might be Talisman’s leases in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, where the company holds two nearly adjacent leases that could end up being linked into a single reservoir worth as much as $2.5 billion. Developing the Iraqi leases could drag on for years, given the disagreement between Kurdistan and the central government. This is exactly the type of asset that Icahn could argue should be sold.

Shares of Talisman are up about 8.6% in premarket trading Tuesday morning at $13.85, above the high end of the stock’s 52-week range of $10.34 to $13.43. The Thomson Reuters consensus price target on the stock is around $13.80.

Are You Still Paying With a Debit Card?

The average American spends $17,274 on debit cards a year, and it’s a HUGE mistake. First, debit cards don’t have the same fraud protections as credit cards. Once your money is gone, it’s gone. But more importantly you can actually get something back from this spending every time you swipe.

Issuers are handing out wild bonuses right now. With some you can earn up to 5% back on every purchase. That’s like getting a 5% discount on everything you buy!

Our top pick is kind of hard to imagine. Not only does it pay up to 5% back, it also includes a $200 cash back reward in the first six months, a 0% intro APR, and…. $0 annual fee. It’s quite literally free money for any one that uses a card regularly. Click here to learn more!

Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings to provide coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.