Icahn Buys More Yahoo!, Sparking Chatter

For details on this purchase and other insider transactions, see today's Insider Insights chart.

NEW YORK -- In a move likely to fuel speculation over Yahoo!'s (YHOO) search for a new chief executive, activist investor Carl Icahn has bought up close to 7 million additional shares of the Internet company, according to regulatory filings.

Icahn, a billionaire hedge-fund manager who threatened to oust Yahoo's board this summer after it rejected a deal with Microsoft(MSFT), snapped up about $67 million worth of shares over three days this week, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Icahn bought 6.8 million shares for an average of $9.92 each in three batches from Monday through Wednesday, bringing his total stake to 75.6 million, or nearly 5.5% of the company, according to the filing made Wednesday.

In his original $1.5 billion investment in Yahoo, Icahn paid an average of about $25 dollars per share.

Yahoo's stock rose 36 cents, or 3.4%, to $10.94 in morning trading Friday.

Yahoo is looking for a new chief executive after co-founder Jerry Yang said earlier this month that he will step down as soon as the board finds a successor.

Icahn has been among the loudest voices arguing for a new direction at Yahoo. He threatened to nominate a new slate of directors after the Sunnyvale, Calif., company rejected a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft this summer. Yahoo gave him a seat on its board and two other slots for members of his choosing.