Icahn Enterprises Plans to Increase Stake in CVR Energy

(Reuters) – Icahn Enterprises LP (NASDAQ:IEP) plans to raise its stake in U.S. oil refiner CVR Energy (NYSE:CVI) by more than 20%, according to the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The company, a controlling shareholder of the oil refiner, aims to increase its stake in CVR to over 81% by purchasing an additional 15 million shares, as reported in draft statements that billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn and his firm are set to release on Friday.

The new offer will allow stockholders to cash out at a premium, with Icahn quoted in the draft statement by WSJ.

To finance this and other transactions, Icahn mentioned he is reducing his firm’s dividend payout for the second time since short-seller Hindenburg Research began shorting IEP's bonds last year.

Icahn Enterprises and CVR did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters.

Carl Icahn currently owns approximately 66% of CVR, which operates the 115,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Coffeyville refinery in Kansas and the 75,000-bpd Wynnewood facility in Oklahoma.