Billionaire investor Bill Ackman is preparing to take his hedge-fund empire public in a bold two-step move, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Ackman is in early-stage discussions to list both his flagship Pershing Square Capital Management and a new closed-end fund, Pershing Square USA, on the New York Stock Exchange as soon as early next year. The new vehicle is expected to lure investors with an unusual sweetener: free shares in the main Pershing Square firm. Sources say partners could distribute up to 10% of Pershing Square’s equity, implying a valuation for the hedge fund significantly above the $10.5 billion it commanded when it sold a 10% stake for $1.05 billion last year.
The plans remain fluid, with insiders warning that shifting market conditions could push back or scuttle the offerings entirely. Pershing Square declined to comment.
If successful, the listings would make Ackman one of the few hedge-fund managers to run a publicly traded firm in the U.S., placing him alongside private-equity titans such as Blackstone and KKR that have flourished as public companies. Publicly traded hedge funds, however, have historically struggled with volatile earnings and investor skepticism. Ackman’s own Europe-listed vehicle, Pershing Square Holdings, has risen nearly 21% this year, while Blue Owl Capital—a U.S.-listed credit manager whose structure Ackman has previously praised—has plunged almost 40% amid turbulence in credit markets.
Founded in 2004, Pershing Square is renowned for its high-conviction activist campaigns and a tightly concentrated portfolio of roughly a dozen large-cap stocks. The firm and its outspoken founder have become fixtures in both financial and political circles, with Ackman’s market bets and public commentary drawing intense scrutiny from Wall Street to Washington.
The reported IPO push comes after years of speculation about a U.S. listing and follows last year’s minority stake sale, widely viewed as a stepping stone toward going public. For Ackman, a successful dual debut would cap a decades-long quest to bring his distinctive brand of activist investing to a broader pool of shareholders.
By DNU Staff