Shares of JetBlue Airways Corp. rose sharply after hours on Monday after billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn reported a 9.91% stake in the air carrier and said his investment firm would continue discussing potential board representation. <\/p>\n
That disclosure was made in a regulatory filing<\/a> on Monday. Icahn, in the filing, said Jetblue\u2019s The filing also said Icahn \u201chad, and intend to continue to have, discussions with members of the issuer\u2019s management and board of directors regarding the possibility of board representation.\u201d<\/p>\n JetBlue shares jumped 16.3% in after-hours trading on Monday. The stock is down 28.9% over the past 12 months. <\/p>\n The move by Icahn comes after a federal judge last month blocked JetBlue\u2019s proposed merger<\/a> with Spirit Airlines Inc. Late last month, JetBlue said the deal with Spirit \u201cremains in effect\u201d<\/a> but that it was considering its options under that agreement. Days earlier, JetBlue said that some conditions to make the deal happen \u201cmay not be satisfied.\u201d<\/a> Spirit, in response, said it believed there was \u201cno basis\u201d for ending the agreement. <\/p>\n Icahn disclosed the stake after Joanna Geraghty became JetBlue\u2019s new chief executive this month, replacing Robin Hayes. The company in January said it expected first-quarter sales to fall 5% to 9%, a bit worse than analysts\u2019 forecasts on FactSet. <\/p>\n \u201cWe remain intensely focused on restoring profitability, taking steps to ensure every dollar we invest is making an impact,\u201d Geraghty said in the company\u2019s earnings release in January. <\/p>\n \u201cAs part of these efforts, we are carefully evaluating deeper cuts to our controllable costs beyond our ongoing fleet modernization and structural cost programs,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\n stock was \u201cundervalued and represented an attractive investment opportunity.\u201d <\/p>\n
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\n potentially leaving the carrier with limited options for future growth as it tries to get back to profitability. The airlines are appealing that decision<\/a>.<\/p>\n