Alcoa urged to drop Alcan bid

Source: Globe and Mail

Jana Partners LLC, which describes itself as one of Alcoa Inc.'s shareholders, is calling on the U.S. aluminum producer to drop its $27-billion (U.S.) hostile bid for Canadian rival Alcan Inc. and consider putting itself on the market.

In a letter sent Tuesday to Alcoa chief executive officer Alain Belda, the U.S. hedge fund said the company should instead focus on creating value for shareholders by considering a potential sale of Alcoa to one or more buyers.

“Given Alcoa's long history of failing to generate shareholder value through acquisitions, we believe that its greatest value can be realized through a sale or break-up of the company,” Jana managing partner Barry Rosenstein wrote.

Jana did not say how much of Alcoa's stock it owns, but it does not appear on Bloomberg's list of Alcoa shareholders. Jana, which manages $7.5-billion and has offices in San Francisco and New York, said it holds Alcoa common stock in various accounts under its management and control. A call to the hedge fund was not immediately returned.



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