A handful of large shareholders at J.C. Penney Co. reported
exiting their stakes in the struggling department store operator
this week, moves that come as the stock has plummeted since the
start of the year.
According to several regulatory filings disclosed this week,
Dodge & Cox, Hotchkis and Wiley Capital Management LLC and
Hayman Capital Management L.P. unloaded their stakes in the
company. Previous filings made with the Securities and Exchange
Commission show Dodge had owned 9.2% of Penney, Hotchkis had 6.33%
and Hayman owned 5.2%.
Meanwhile, Evercore Trust Co. disclosed trimming its Penney
stake to 4.12% from 5.34% last year. BlackRock Inc., though, raised
its holding to 8% from 6.65% last year.
Penney declined to comment on the stock sales, saying it doesn't
comment on market activity.
The ownership changes follow last year's high-profile exits of
Pershing Square Capital Management LP and Vornado Realty Trust,
which both had significant holdings in the company.
William Ackman, head of Pershing Square, unloaded his stake at a
significant loss following a public spat with other board members
as he tried to accelerate the search for a new chief executive.
Mr. Ackman had become a divisive figure at the company by
backing the appointment of Apple Inc. retail executive Ron Johnson
as chief executive in 2011 and supporting a strategy that ended up
pushing the retailer deep into the red by the time it removed Mr.
Johnson last April and brought back predecessor Myron Ullman.
Penney has still struggled to stem its sales declines, reporting
earlier this month fiscal fourth-quarter sales that weren't a
meaningful improvement from a year earlier, renewing fears about
the company. The results fell well short of market expectations and
raised questions about whether the company would be able to climb
out of the hole caused by a failed overhaul under Mr. Johnson.
The shares have lost about a third of the value in the
year-to-date and briefly traded under $5 a share, continuing a
dramatic decline. The stock traded above $40 a share two years
ago.
Write to Ben Fox Rubin at ben.rubin@wsj.com
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