Bill Ackman compares Carl Icahn's embattled company to collapsed fund Archegos

• Bill Ackman said Carl Icahn's embattled firm "somewhat" reminds him of the collapsed firm Archegos.
• The billionaire investor tweeted that Icahn could use a friend as he fends off a short seller.

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman said the way Carl Icahn runs his business has been "outed" by short seller Hindenburg Research. He also compared the Wall Street legend's company to a family office that imploded in 2021.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Ackman said that Icahn has made many enemies during his career and could use a friend now, given the fallout from a recent short seller report that targeted Icahn Enterprises (IEP).

"$IEP reminds me somewhat of Archegos," Ackman said, referring to Bill Hwang's Archegos Capital Management. He drew a parallel between Archegos' reliance on margin loans from multiple lenders, and Icahn borrowing against his Icahn Enterprise shares to fund his investments.

"The problem is that multiple lenders make for a more chaotic situation," Ackman tweeted. "All it takes is for one lender to break ranks and liquidate shares or attempt to hedge, before the house comes falling down."

"Here, the patsy is the last lender to liquidate," he added.

Ackman also questioned whether Icahn Enterprises should still be trading at a premium to its net asset value. "Its performance history and governance structure do not justify a premium; rather they suggest that a large discount to NAV would be appropriate," he said.

The Pershing Square chief added that he's neither long nor short Icahn Enterprises, and only "watching from a distance."

Ackman weighed in after Hindenburg alleged Icahn Enterprises inflated its asset values and used "ponzi-like" structures to move money from new investors to older ones.

Icahn has dismissed the short seller's report as purely "self-serving," and stood by his company's public disclosures. Icahn Enterprises stock have fallen by nearly 53% since Hindenburg targeted the company on May 2, wiping out a large portion of Icahn's personal fortune.

The two billionaires have feuded in the past, most notably when they clashed over Herbalife, a maker of nutritional supplements.

Ackman highlighted one of Icahn's favorite Wall Street sayings in his tweet: "If you want a friend, get a dog."

"Over his storied career, Icahn has made many enemies," he noted. "I don't know that he has any real friends. He could use one here."