Dec 18 Reuters Activist investor Carl Icahn said on Monday that he plans to oust directors at Illumina, signalling plans to mount a second board challenge at the genesequencing company only months after shareholders elected one of his director candidates.

Icahn disclosed his plans without offering details in a letter to other shareholders less than 24 hours after Illumina said it will divest blood test maker Grail.

The billionaire investor long criticized Illumina39;s Grail acquisition and made it a centrepiece of his previous proxy fight where Andrew Teno, a portfolio manager working for Icahn, won a seat.

On Monday Icahn cheered the decision but said the job at Illumina has not been fully completed.

Our third goal is to remove these legacy conflicted directors, Icahn wrote in a letter that was made public in a regulatory filing. His first two goals were to push out former CEO Francis deSouza, who resigned in June, and get Illumina to divest Grail, the letter said.

Icahn said Illumina39;s legacy directors cannot be trusted to oversee the disposal of Grail. It would be a great mistake to allow the legacy conflicted directors to influence Illumina given their history of reckless decisionmaking and value destruction, the letter said.

Illumina39;s stock price climbed 1 in early trading to 128.38.

With additional reporting by Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Andrea Ricci

Source Reuters