Bill Ackman Raises Stakes In Fortune, J.C. Penney (JCP, FO)

Legendary value investor Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Capital has raised his stake considerably in two companies he's gone activist against, Fortune Brands FO and J.C. Penney JCP. Ackman raised his stake in Fortune, which is in the process of spinning off its home and security unit to shareholders, and either sell or spin off its golf business. His stake in the fourth quarter of 2010 went from 7.465 million shares to 16.668 million shares, a jump of 123%. He also added to his J.C. Penney stake, in the form of call options, as well as additional common stock. He had a total of 34 million shares of the company by the end of 2010. Ackman is currently a member of the board of directors at J.C. Penney, as he has said in the past he sees tremendous value in the retailer's operations, and not the company's real estate. Ackman recently appeared at the Harbor Investment Conference, in which he talked about J.C. Penney. He said that Penney's had the most potential of any company in his portfolio. Ackman has teamed up with Vornado Realty Trust VNO co-own more than a quarter of the company's outstanding stock. He also disclosed a new position in General Motors GM, as well as his stake in Howard Hughes Co. HHC, which he received from General Growth Properties GGP, when the real estate investment trust emerged from bankruptcy. Ackman is the chairman of Howard Hughes Co. He substantially cut his stakes in ADP ADP, Target TGT, Kraft KFT, and sold out of his stake in Landry's Restaurants LNY.