Billionaire Haefner adds to Computer Associates stake
By siliconindia   |   Friday, 03 October 2003, 19:30 IST
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NEW YORK: Swiss billionaire Walter Haefner has added to his stake in Computer Associates International Inc., spending about $38 million buying the stock this week. Haefner, through his investment firm Careal Holding AG, bought 300,000 shares on Monday and 1.16 million more Tuesday when the stock was trading around $26, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The purchases bring the 90-something investor's ownership to 116.8 million shares, or about 20% of the Islandia, N.Y., maker of business software. Haefner could not be reached. A Computer Associates spokesman declined to comment. The transactions mark the first time Haefner has added to his stake in the company in several years. Haefner held 123.1 million Computer Associates shares from July 1999 to July 2001, then trimmed his position to 115.3 million by July 2002, according to SEC filings. The reclusive investor voiced support for Computer Associates and backed its management in proxy fights with Texas billionaire Sam Wyly in 2001 and 2002. Haefner, a former amateur jockey, was listed as the world's 132nd richest person in 2003 by Forbes magazine thanks largely to his Computer Associates investment. Computer Associates, whose accounting is being investigated by federal regulators, has been one of the best performing large-cap software stocks of the year. After falling 61% in 2002, the stock has doubled so far this year. (Courtesy: Dow Jones

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