How Bill Ackman’s anti-woke crusade paid off

Bill Ackman’s turn as an anti-DEI provocateur has turned the investor, well-known enough on Wall Street but not far beyond, into a culture warrior. It’s also been very good for business.

Shares of his Amsterdam-listed investment firm have been on a tear since Ackman took to X to criticize corporate diversity efforts, support Israel, stump for long-shot presidential candidates, question childhood vaccine schedules, and bash the student protests that have taken over college quads across the country.

Ackman owns about 27% of the fund, which means the transformation to a right-wing meme stock has earned him $280 million. There’s no obvious explanation other than Ackman’s political turn: He’s added half a million X followers over the same period.