Icahn pairs back on TWX holdings

Carl Icahn has reduced his holdings in Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) by roughly 30 million shares from the 55 million he held as of the prior filing, according to my analysis after adding up the numbers from the Securities and Exchange Commission filings this morning and after comparing it to past notes.

How many shares is it exactly? Icahn himself may not even be able to tell you. This selling includes hedge fund SAC and other holders as well and should be no huge surprise after the rise in the last four months of 2006. Shares have been under some pressure after reaching $23 and after the cable delays began, so this should also have been somewhat known.

The one issue to note here is that none of these shares were ever really sold in a huge flood and no selling seemed coordinated. Very frequently, large professional investors all bail out en masse. But while many have apparently reduced their stakes in TWX, the stock was not dumped in force.

Also keep in mind that these filings all have a time lag. So it is very possible that the real holdings are different than stated. With the gains Icahn has made and with the investments he has also made it would not be a shock if he has sold more -- or even all -- of his TWX holdings.