According to Forbes, which cited the Wall street Journal as a source, Atticus told Barclays officials at a meeting that Barclays stock is undervalued. To remedy this, the group advised the bank to drop its bids for ABN Amro.
In response, Forbes reports, Barclays said in a statement: The views expressed by Atticus Capital LP are not representative of the feedback we have received from shareholders who remain supportive of our strategy.
If other shareholders feel differently, we encourage them to engage in a dialogue with us. We believe this transaction will create significant incremental value for our shareholders and meets our rigorous financial criteria, the bank added.
Barclays has been involved in the ABN Amro takeover battle since March 2007, when it appeared as if the deal had been agreed between the two parties. However, this was later complicated with the launch of a higher bid from a Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium.
