Ticker: Carl Icahn jumps into JetBlue; Fidelity Charitable distributes $11.8B
Shares of JetBlue soared more than 21% Tuesday as activist investor Carl Icahn took an almost 10% stake in the airline.
Icahn, who purchased the shares in January and February, said in a regulatory filing that he believes JetBlue’s stock is undervalued and represents an attractive investment opportunity. The stock is down about 29% in the past year.
He has had talks, and plans to continue talking with JetBlue in regards to possible representation on its board of directors.
Icahn became widely known as a corporate raider in the 1980s when he engineered a takeover of TWA, or Trans World Airlines.
JetBlue was dealt a major blow last month when a federal judge sided with the Biden administration and blocked JetBlue Airways from buying Spirit Airlines, saying the $3.8 billion deal would reduce competition. Both airlines have filed their intention to appeal.
Fidelity Charitable distributes $11.8B
Fidelity Charitable, the nation’s largest grantmaker, distributed a record-setting $11.8 billion to nonprofits in 2023, up more than 5% from the previous year at a time when generally donations are dropping.
The grant total shows how quickly use of the donor-advised fund — an investment account that allows donations to be distributed over time — is growing. Fidelity Charitable said distributions to nonprofits in 2023 were four times what they were 10 years ago.
“I think 2023 was a pretty amazing year,” Fidelity Charitable President Jacob Pruitt said. “When you think about the volatility, the market inflation, we still did a phenomenal job in regards to grantmaking. And that’s our big measure — dollars going into the sector.”