ICAHN: Herbalife should go private

Carl Icahn is asking regulators for the option to up his stake in Herbalife up to 50%.

That would be a huge increase since he is currently limited to 35% of shares. Icahn said he currently owns about 20% of Herbalife's shares.

Icahn said he is asking the FTC for permission to raise his stake. He also said that Herbalife would be better off as a private company to be rid of Bill Ackman, Icahn's rival who has famously shorted the company.

Icahn made the comments at the Delivering Alpha conference hosted by CNBC and Institutional Investor on Tuesday.

Herbalife is up 2.5% in after-hours trading after falling 3% earlier during trading hours on Tuesday.