WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Billionaire investor Carl Icahn slashed his stake in Offshore drilling company Transocean Ltd. (RIG) in order to recognize a capital loss for tax planning purposes, a filing with the Securities And Exchange Commission on Wednesday revealed.
Icahn had accumulated 5.9 percent stake in Transocean in November 2013, but now reduced it to 1.5 percent, according to the filing. His companies beneficially own, in the aggregate, 5.48 Million shares. At the end of the June quarter, he had held 21.48 million shares.
Icahn further said that both of his director designees would continue to serve on Transocean's board on the company's request.
In the filing, Icahn said that Transocean Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Thigpen and his team have done an outstanding job given the challenging environment, and that he continues to have confidence in them going forward.
Recently, Icahn had trimmed his stake in U.S. natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy Corp, and his representative director resigned from its board.
Transocean's shares gained 6.37 percent on Wednesday and settled at $10.02, but dropped 0.50 percent in after-market trading.
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