Icahn buys more Lionsgate shares

Is Carl Icahn back in the Lionsgate hunt? The maverick investor disclosed Friday that he and affiliates of his Icahn Associates Corp. have acquired more than 702,000 shares in the minimajor since Wednesday, swooping in amid the stock market's wild ride. News of Icahn's move came as Lionsgate released its proxy statement and set Sept. 13 as the date of its annual meeting in Toronto. Icahn bought about two-thirds of the shares on Wednesday and Thursday at price of about $6.70-$6.75 per share, with the remainder coming on Friday at a price of $6.90 per share. The purchase raises the specter of Icahn is making another run at exerting control over the company. At present Icahn is believed to control about 33% of the company. In 2009 and 2010, Icahn dogged Lionsgate with vocal criticism of management and strategic priorities as he sought to build up a controlling stake in the company and force a clearing out of its board of directors and top managers. But the slate of directors Icahn ran at Lionsgate's last annual meeting in December were handily defeated, after which the investor seemed to back away from the fight. Earlier this week, Lionsgate noted in its quarterly earnings report "decreased costs associated with shareholder activism" as a factor in its return to profit for the fiscal first quarter. A Lionsgate spokesman had no comment on Icahn's disclosure. Contact Variety Staff at news@variety.com