Bill Ackman sent an email to J. Michael Pearson, the CEO of embattled drug company Valeant Pharmaceuticals, showing his support for the executive after The Wall Street Journal reported that Ackman had considered removing Pearson from his post.
"While I have strong views on Valeant's communication strategy and would have taken a different approach, you and the board should not interpret this as a negative reflection on my view of you as the CEO of the company," the email, which was sent at 2:03 p.m., said.
It continued: "I understand that the company's counsel and the board may have different views on what can be communicated in light of regulatory scrutiny. This is indeed a judgment call, and I respect the board's decision in this regard."
Here's a copy:
Almost an hour before Ackman had hit send, Pershing Square sent out a press release, saying that it would be hosting a call of its own with investors to discuss its investment in Valeant.
Later that morning, Ackman called into Valeant's board meeting, telling its members that they needed to "come clean" and host another conference call that day, The Journal report said. The board decided not to host another call.
On his own call last week, Ackman said he would have "appreciated more color" from Valeant's management as opposed to a "scripted" conference call. He also noted that he wanted Valeant to be more transparent. He felt as if Valeant failed to adequately address some key questions on its call.
A comment Ackman made to a board member that day also made it sound as if Pearson should be ousted.
"If Mike hides in his bunker on this, he can't be CEO," Ackman told the company's lead director, Robert Ingram of Hatteras Venture Partners, The Journal's Monica Langley reported.
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