Kerkorian's Tracinda Reveals 4.7 Pct Ford Stake, Seeks More

Tracinda Corp. is planning to offer to buy Ford Motor Co. shares at a premium, citing the Detroit automaker's turnaround efforts.

The Beverly-Hills, California-based firm will offer to buy 20 million shares for up to $8.50 per share, a 13.3 percent premium over Ford's closing stock price of $7.50 on Friday.

Kerkorian sold off a 10 percent stake in struggling General Motors Corp. in 2006. The plan to purchase shares represents a vote of confidence for Ford and its leadership.

"Tracinda believes that Ford management under the leadership of Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally will continue to show significant improvements in its results going forward," Tracinda said in a statement.

The company said it been following Ford closely since the company released its 2007 fourth quarter results, noting that the company's management was gaining "highly meaningful traction in its turnaround efforts."

Tracinda added that last week's $100 million profit for the second quarter at Ford reinforced its positive view of automaker.

It first began accumulating shares in the company on April 2. It currently owns about 100 million shares, or 4.7 percent of outstanding shares.