Deals
Icahn's $5.4 Billion Exit Strategy Soothes Auto-Parts Retailers
- Tenneco will buy the unit, then separate into two public firms
- Billionaire investor had been buying up car-related businesses
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It’s hard to be frenemies in business.
Carl Icahn is selling auto-parts maker Federal-Mogul LLC to competitor Tenneco Inc. for $5.4 billion. Part of the reason is that Federal-Mogul’s own customers -- retailers like AutoZone Inc. and O’Reilly Automotive Inc. -- bristled at the fact the billionaire investor was both their supplier and competitor through his many auto-related holdings, people familiar with the situation said. Icahn owns distributors like Auto Plus and retail shops like Pep Boys, meaning it sells to both everyday customers and to repair shops.