Activist investor Carl Icahn showed his support of Illumina's new CEO on Thursday, two days after the DNA sequencing company named its new leader.
Why it matters: Icahn's blessing, posted on X midmorning, is a relief for the company after it spent a year battling the activist over its strategy, in a bruising and expensive fight that ultimately led to the resignation of its CEO.
Details: Icahn, who continues to own a small stake in the company as of last quarter, said new Illumina CEO Jacob Thaysen "has my full support."
Zoom out: deSouza's departure in June opened the door for the company to seek to divest its ownership of cancer detection company Grail, a company at the center of Icahn's dispute with Illumina's management team and board.
- Icahn's campaign focused on forcing Illumina to divest its Grail ownership.
The big picture: Investors will be watching to see how Thaysen approaches the Grail business, and whether he can rebuild the market value the company lost since the acquisition.
- Thaysen joins after nearly a decade at Agilent Technologies, where he ran its largest analytical-lab unit, and doubled the division's operating profit.
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