Icahn Enterprises

On February 17, 1987, the company was formed in Delaware as a limited partnership, American Real Estate Partners, L.P., initially focused on real estate.⁠[1][1]

In 1990, Carl Icahn acquired control of the company’s predecessor. He and his wholly owned entities have been the controlling holders ever since, and he has personally served as chairman of the general partner, Icahn Enterprises G.P. Inc., since 1990.⁠[2][2][1]

On August 8, 2007, the company acquired the general partners that provided investment advisory services to Icahn’s private funds, together with interests in Icahn Capital Management L.P., thereby adding an investment management business. Since August 2007, Icahn has managed private funds including Icahn Partners as chief executive officer of Icahn Capital LP.⁠[3][3][1]

On September 17, 2007, the company changed its name from American Real Estate Partners, L.P. to Icahn Enterprises L.P. At the time its businesses included investment management, metals, real estate and home fashion, its gaming segment was being sold, and its depositary units were listed on the New York Stock Exchange.⁠[3][3][3][3]

In 2012, the company acquired a controlling interest in CVR Energy, a petroleum refining and fertilizer company. The stake began as a position in the Investment segment and later became the operating subsidiary that makes up the Energy segment.⁠[1]

On January 31, 2023, Auto Plus, an aftermarket auto parts distributor in the Automotive segment, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, after which the company no longer controlled the business.⁠[1][1]

On May 2, 2023, the short seller Hindenburg Research announced a short position in IEP, saying its units were overvalued by more than 75% and alleging that the company used money from new investors to pay distributions to existing ones, a “Ponzi-like” economic structure. IEP units fell about 24% that day on record volume. IEP and Icahn denied the allegations and said they would fight back.⁠[4][4][4][5]

After the report was published, the company was named in two securities class actions and one derivative suit; the class actions were consolidated in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. On May 3 and June 21, 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Division of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, respectively, requested information from the company.⁠[6][6][6][7]

On August 4, 2023, the company reported second-quarter results and cut its quarterly distribution from $2 to $1 per unit. The units closed down more than 23% that day, and the company’s market value fell from about $18 billion on May 1 to about $9 billion.⁠[5][5][5]

In February 2024, Andrew Teno became the company’s president, chief executive officer and a director. He had been a portfolio manager at the subsidiary Icahn Capital LP since October 2020 and previously worked at Fir Tree Partners.⁠[1][1][1]

On August 19, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges against IEP and Carl Icahn for failing to disclose that Icahn had pledged IEP securities to obtain personal margin loans. From late 2018, the pledged securities represented about 51% to 82% of IEP’s outstanding units, but IEP did not disclose this in a Form 10-K until February 25, 2022. The SEC found that IEP’s annual reports for fiscal years 2018 through 2020 omitted the disclosure, in violation of Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act. Without admitting or denying the findings, IEP agreed to pay a $1.5 million civil penalty and to cease and desist, and Icahn separately paid $500,000. The company said that, after it submitted documents to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, there had been no substantive contact between the two.⁠[8][8][8][2][2][8][7][7]

As of the end of 2025, Icahn and his affiliates owned about 86% of the outstanding depositary units. The fair value of the company’s investment in the investment funds managed by Icahn was about $2.7 billion, with significant holdings including American Electric Power, Southwest Gas, EchoStar, Centuri and International Flavors and Fragrances. In 2025 the company declared four quarterly distributions totaling $2 per unit, which unitholders could elect to receive in cash or in additional units; the quarterly distribution declared on February 23, 2026, was $0.50 per unit.⁠[1][1][1][1][1]

Icahn Enterprises holds a 99% limited partner interest in Icahn Enterprises Holdings L.P., which, together with its subsidiaries, holds substantially all of the company’s assets and conducts its operations. Icahn Enterprises G.P. Inc., indirectly owned and controlled by Icahn, holds a 1% general partner interest in each of the two entities. The directors of the general partner are selected by Icahn as controlling holder, and limited partners have no right to elect them. According to the annual report for fiscal year 2025, filed in February 2026, Icahn serves as chairman of the general partner and Ted Papapostolou as chief financial officer.⁠[1][1][1][1][1][1]

The company describes its approach as following the Graham & Dodd value investing method to find undervalued companies. Unlike value investors who wait passively, however, it often becomes actively involved in target companies, through means ranging from negotiations with boards and management to proxy contests and tender offers up to acquiring control. Icahn has been an activist investor since 1980. Several of the company’s operating subsidiaries began as investment positions.⁠[1][1][1][1][1]

As of the end of 2025, the company had seven reportable segments. The Investment segment operates through private investment funds. The Energy segment consists of CVR Energy, about 70% owned, which owns refineries in Coffeyville, Kansas, and Wynnewood, Oklahoma, with capacity to process about 206,500 barrels of crude oil per day, and also produces nitrogen fertilizer; it accounted for about 83% of consolidated net sales in each year from 2023 to 2025. The Automotive segment, Icahn Automotive, provides automotive repair and maintenance services and is headquartered in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. The Food Packaging segment is Viskase, a casings producer about 93% owned; the Home Fashion segment is WestPoint Home; the Pharma segment is Vivus; and the Real Estate segment holds commercial properties, residential development projects, and resort and country club properties.⁠[1][1][1][1][1][1][1][1][1][1][1][1]

As of the end of 2025, the holding company and the Investment segment had 47 employees, and the other segments had about 13,500 employees combined, about 55% of them in the Automotive segment. Businesses the company has sold in recent years include Federal-Mogul, Tropicana Entertainment, American Railcar Industries, Ferrous Resources and PSC Metals.⁠[1][1][1]

Icahn Enterprises: Official website: https://www.ielp.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[1]