Bill’s ‘negative’ way

Minus man Ackman rips Icahn

It appears Bill Ackman doesn’t want to dwell on the negative.

The brash and outspoken hedgie was explaining his second-quarter results to the media on Wednesday, saying his Pershing Square “year-to-date numbers are between the 14 percent range for the private funds and the 18 percent range of [the public company].

“Of course, our performance to date is a negative number,” he quickly added.

The poor performance for the f irst half of 2016 comes after a 20.5 percent decline in 2015.

Dragging Pershing down were Ackman’s twin devils: Valeant Pharmaceuticals and Herbalife.

Valeant, the much maligned Canadian pharmaceutical company, which accounts for 6 percent of Pershing’s holdings, is down 23.4 percent for the quarter and 76 percent year-to-date.

Shares gained 4.4 percent on Wednesday, to $24.57, after Washington approved two of its drugs this week.

And then there is Herbalife, which accounts for roughly 10 percent of Pershing’s capital.

Last week Herbalife reached a $200 million settlement with regulators that did not label the nutritional shake maker a pyramid scheme.

Ackman had bet $1 billion nearly four years ago that it was and has waged a scorched earth battle ever since.

On the call, Ackman certainly wasn’t letting the settlement ground his air attack.

“Herbalife has been shut down by the FTC — they just haven’t realized it yet,” Ackman maintained, as the Los Angeles company was on its way to adding another 43 cents to its shares to close at $65, 53 percent over its closing price two days before the massive short was announced.

Ackman also took time to attack Carl Icahn, his longtime foe, who is long on Herbalife.

Ackman just about accused Icahn of stock manipulation, saying Icahn misled investors after the settlement.

Icahn could not be reached for comment.

Activist investor Bill Ackman updated Wall Street on the poor performance of his Pershing Square hedge fund — and took the opportunity to kick his nemesis Carl Icahn (inset).