Icahn Increases Stake in Herbalife

Carl Icahn filed a 13D Thursday, showing that he had increased his stake in multi-level marketer Herbalife HLF. Shares of Herbalife jumped over 1.50% in after-hours trading. Icahn raised his stake in the company from 13.6% to 15.5%. Last month, Herbalife's management had approved Icahn to buy up to 25% of the company and add two directors to the board. Herbalife has been one of the hotest battleground companies over the last few months. In December, hedge fund magnate Bill Ackman announced that he had sold short about one-fifth of the company's shares. Ackman argued that the company was a pyramid scheme and its shares would eventually become worthless. Icahn began building a stake in the company back in December after Ackman's presentation, and has been steadily buying more shares. Earlier on Thursday, short seller Jim Chanos said that he believed Ackman's basic premise on Herbalife was correct, although he was no longer short any shares. Herbalife shares closed at $41 on Thursday, and were up about $0.50 in the after-hours session.