Mentor Graphics' Stock Falls After Carl Icahn Sells Back Half His Stake

Mentor Graphics Corp.'s stock dropped 0.9% in morning trade Friday, after Carl Icahn agreed to sell half his stake in the electronic design automation systems provider back to the company. Prior to the agreement, Icahn was the largest shareholder, owning 16.1 million, or 14% of the outstanding common stock. Mentor is paying $146 million for 8.06 million shares, or $18.12 a share, which was Thursday's closing price. Icahn would remain Mentor's largest shareholder, as his remaining 8.06 million share stake would still be above BlackRock Fund Advisors' 7.91 million share stake, according to FactSet. Icahn built up his stake in Mentor from the second quarter of 2010 through the second quarter of 2011; the highest closing price during that time was $15.96 on March 3, 2011. The stock has tumbled 35% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has lost 8.6%.