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During the July 2015 CNBC Institutional Investor Delivering Alpha Conference, activist investor Carl Icahn criticized Larry Fink and BlackRock Inc. for backing corporate management over activist shareholders. <\/p>\n
Icahn said Fink’s annual letters to CEOs were effectively a “sales pitch” for BlackRock, encouraging companies to issue debt and pursue acquisitions under the guise of long-term planning rather than addressing poor management. He argued that this approach benefited BlackRock by increasing assets under management while shielding underperforming executives from accountability. <\/p>\n
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Using Motorola Solutions Inc. as an example, Icahn said the company had lost $9 billion in value before activists intervened. He claimed BlackRock refused to support his campaign to overhaul the company, adding, “We saved the company. Wouldn’t vote for me.” <\/p>\n
Icahn also argued that BlackRock’s immense influence, managing about $4.8 trillion at the time, allowed it to protect entrenched management teams instead of supporting shareholder-driven reforms. “\u2026.you use it to protect these guys as long as they do what you want,” said Icahn. <\/p>\n
While emphasizing that he respected Fink personally, Icahn said BlackRock’s voting practices were “very dangerous” for U.S. capital markets because they discouraged accountability and meaningful corporate change. <\/p>\n
How Icahn Reshaped Motorola <\/p>\n
Motorola’s troubles were largely driven by its failure to replicate the success of its blockbuster RAZR handset. Sales of follow-up models, including the KRZR, fell short of expectations as competitors such as Nokia Oyj and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. gained ground, while Apple Inc.’s first iPhone reshaped the mobile industry. The company’s handset division slipped into losses, prompting investor concerns over management’s strategy. <\/p>\n
Trending: Avoid the #1 Investing Mistake: How Your ‘Safe’ Holdings Could Be Costing You Big Time<\/a> <\/p>\n The declining performance triggered activist investor Carl Icahn’s campaign, which called for governance changes and measures to unlock shareholder value. Icahn launched a years-long activist campaign at Motorola beginning in 2007, initially seeking a $12 billion share buyback before escalating to a proxy fight for board seats. After failing to win board representation, he intensified pressure through public letters, a lawsuit seeking access to company records, and criticism of Motorola’s leadership, while raising his stake to more than 10%. <\/p>\n The company eventually agreed to appoint two of his nominees and split into Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions in 2011. Later that year, Alphabet Inc.’s Google acquired Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion, a deal valued at a 63% premium. <\/p>\n Motorola’s BlackRock Connection <\/p>\n BlackRock’s ties with Motorola date back to the early 2000s, when it became one of the company’s largest institutional shareholders. The relationship was purely as an investor, with BlackRock holding shares on behalf of clients and voting on corporate matters. <\/p>\n The connection became highly visible during Carl Icahn’s 2007\u20132008 activist campaign, when he accused BlackRock of supporting Motorola’s incumbent board instead of backing his proposed reforms. Following Motorola’s 2011 split, BlackRock continued to hold investments in the successor companies, including Motorola Solutions. <\/p>\n See Also: Skip the Regrets: The Essential Retirement Tips Experts Wish Everyone Knew Earlier.<\/a> <\/p>\n What’s Next for Motorola? <\/p>\n In June, Motorola Solutions announced its $1.5 billion acquisition of counter-drone technology firm D-Fend Solutions. The deal expands Motorola’s airspace security capabilities. D-Fend has grown its annual revenue by more than 50% over the past three years and is expected to generate $185 million in 2026 revenue. The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. <\/p>\n Motorola Solutions is expected to report earnings on Aug. 6, 2026, with analysts forecasting EPS of $3.77 and revenue of $3 billion, up from $2.77 billion a year earlier. The stock currently trades at a P\/E ratio of 32.5x, reflecting a premium valuation. <\/p>\n Image via Shutterstock <\/p>\n Read Next: Think you’re saving enough for your kids? You might be dangerously off \u2014 see why<\/a> <\/p>\n Building Wealth Across More Than Just the Market <\/p>\n Building a resilient portfolio means thinking beyond a single asset or market trend. Economic cycles shift, sectors rise and fall, and no one investment performs well in every environment. That’s why many investors look to diversify with platforms that provide access to real estate, fixed-income opportunities, precious metals, and even self-directed retirement accounts. By spreading exposure across multiple asset classes, it becomes easier to manage risk, capture steady returns, and create long-term wealth that isn’t tied to the fortunes of just one company or industry. <\/p>\n Arrived <\/p>\n Backed by Jeff Bezos, Arrived Homes makes real estate investing accessible with a low barrier to entry. Investors can buy fractional shares of single-family rentals and vacation homes starting with as little as $100<\/a>. This allows everyday investors to diversify into real estate, collect rental income, and build long-term wealth without needing to manage properties directly. <\/p>\n FarmTogether <\/p>\n Farmland has historically held its value through market volatility and delivered returns uncorrelated to stocks and bonds. For accredited investors, FarmTogether offers direct access to high-quality U.S. farmland starting at $15,000<\/a> \u2014 fully managed, with no landlord headaches. <\/p>\n Immersed <\/p>\n Immersed is building technology for the future of work through spatial computing.<\/a> Known for its AR\/VR productivity platform that enables users to work across multiple virtual screens, the company has grown to more than 1.5 million users worldwide. Immersed is also developing Visor, a lightweight headset designed specifically for professional productivity, positioning the company at the intersection of remote work, extended reality (XR), and next-generation computing. <\/p>\n Fundrise <\/p>\n Private real estate and private credit can add income and stability to a stock-heavy portfolio. Fundrise offers access to diversified private real estate<\/a> and credit strategies through an easy-to-use platform, with professionally managed portfolios designed to generate passive income and long-term growth. <\/p>\n Realberry <\/p>\n Institutional-quality real estate has traditionally been difficult for individual investors to access. Realberry gives accredited investors direct access to private real estate opportunities <\/a>backed by a team with 35 years of experience, $3.4 billion in assets under management, and $481 million in cumulative distributions paid to investors as of Q4 2025, according to the company. With a portfolio spanning 13 million square feet across seven U.S. states, Realberry focuses on acquiring, developing, and managing real estate with an emphasis on long-term value creation while its principals often invest alongside clients to help align interests. <\/p>\n Mode Mobile <\/p>\n Mode Mobile is changing the way people interact with their phones by letting users earn money from the same apps and activities they already use every day.<\/a> Instead of platforms keeping all the advertising revenue, Mode Mobile shares a portion back with users who engage with content, play games, and scroll on their devices. Named one of Deloitte’s fastest-growing software companies in North America, the company has built a large beta user base and is scaling a model that turns everyday smartphone usage into a potential income stream.\u00a0 <\/p>\n EquityMultiple\u00a0 <\/p>\n For accredited investors looking beyond stocks and bonds, EquityMultiple provides access to vetted commercial real estate deals starting at $5,000<\/a>,<\/a> with only ~5% of opportunities passing their due diligence process. <\/p>\n \u00a9 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. During…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":150642,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[160],"tags":[70851,10924,711,48028,710,70850,70849],"class_list":["post-150641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-larry-fink","tag-activist-investor","tag-assets-under-management","tag-blackrock","tag-carl-icahn","tag-larry-fink","tag-motorola-mobility","tag-motorola-solutions"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@people\/116915349888901390","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=150641"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150641\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/150642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=150641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/people\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=150641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}