Pershing Square's most successful equity investment ever was General Growth Properties, bought while the company was going bankrupt.

Judge as of 2026-10-01. The claim has two parts: (a) General Growth Properties (GGP) was Pershing Square's most successful equity investment ever, measured by dollar profit or by multiple/return; (b) Pershing Square bought it while GGP was heading into or in bankruptcy (2008–2010). True: Pershing Square letters, filings or reliable reporting show GGP as its largest gain or highest return of any equity investment, and that the stake was built around GGP's 2009 Chapter 11 filing. Mostly true: GGP ranks as the top investment on one common measure (dollars or multiple) but not on the other, with (b) holding. Mixed: GGP is one of the top few investments but another clearly beat it on the main measures, or (b) does not hold. Mostly false: GGP was a large winner, but several investments clearly beat it. False: GGP was not a major winner for Pershing Square, or another investment beat it decisively on every measure.

Set before the research began.

1. E1 Why did Ackman’s Pershing Square exit General Growth Properties? Market Realist · 24 February 2014

   “In 2011, Ackman told Bloomberg that his $60 million investment had “turned into $1.6 billion.””

2. E2 Why did Ackman’s Pershing Square exit General Growth Properties? Market Realist · 24 February 2014

   “Pershing Square exited its remaining stake in GGP, one of the firm’s most profitable investments.”

3. E3 33089409 Pershing Q1 2010 Investor Letter Scribd (reposting Pershing Square Q1 2010 Investor Update) · 8 June 2010 Own record

   “On that note, we have spent significant organizational resources on General Growth Properties Inc. (GGP), which has been the most significant contributor to fund performance in 2009 and in the first quarter of 2010.”

4. E4 33089409 Pershing Q1 2010 Investor Letter Scribd (reposting Pershing Square Q1 2010 Investor Update) · 8 June 2010 Own record

   “in this case, my participation on the GGP board helped the company formulate and implement its bankruptcy strategy over the previous year.”

5. E5 33089409 Pershing Q1 2010 Investor Letter Scribd (hosting Pershing Square Q1 2010 Investor Update) · 8 June 2010 Own record

   “On that note, we have spent significant organizational resources on General Growth Properties Inc. (GGP), which has been the most significant contributor to fund performance in 2009 and in the first quarter of 2010.”

6. E6 Pershing Square Third Quarter Investor Letter Scribd (hosting Pershing Square Q3 2009 Investor Letter) · 3 December 2009 Own record

   “Below we have summarized General Growth Properties Inc. (“GGP”) and Target, two of last quarter’s most significant contributors to fund performance:”

7. E7 Pershing Square Third Quarter Investor Letter Scribd (hosting Pershing Square Q3 2009 Investor Letter) · 3 December 2009 Own record

   “The most material development in the bankruptcy process occurred after the end of the quarter, when GGP announced an agreement with approximately $9.7 billion of its secured creditors to extend the maturities of their debts”

8. E8 Ackman sells Gen. Growth shares to exit holding in mall owner Providence Business News (PBN) · 13 February 2014

   “The effort “turned $60 million into $1.6 billion,” the hedge-fund manager told Bloomberg News in 2011, and contributed to his flagship fund’s net return of 29 percent in 2010.”

9. E9 Pershing Square Finds Bargain In Bid for General Growth Properties Institutional Investor · 28 May 2010

   “This technique may turn out to be the source of the most lucrative trade in the history of Pershing Square — or that of any other firm.”

10. E10 Pershing Q3 2010 Letter Pershing Square Capital Management (investor letter hosted on Scribd) · 17 November 2010 Own record

    “We are pleased to note that GGP stock initially purchased for 34 cents per share in November of 2008 (and at an average price of less than $1.00 per share) now trades for more than $18.00 per share including the shares received in the HHC spinoff.”

11. E11 Billionaire Bill Ackman Reveals His 'Best Investment' Ever: A $60 Million Bet On Near-Bankrupt Mall Operator That Returned Over 9,000% Yahoo Finance (Benzinga content) · 1 October 2025

    “Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman described one of the most lucrative trades of his career during a recent appearance at The Citadel, calling a bet on a bankrupt shopping mall operator "the best investment" he ever made.”

Part (b) is supported. Pershing Square's Q3 2010 letter says it first bought GGP stock in November 2008 at 34 cents a share, and its 2009–2010 letters describe GGP going through bankruptcy (E10, E4, E7). Independent reports relay Ackman's 2011 statement that the $60 million stake turned into $1.6 billion, and one calls GGP one of the firm's most profitable investments (E1, E2, E8). However, none of the evidence compares GGP's dollar gain or return multiple with Pershing Square's other equity investments. E9 only speculated in 2010 that it "may turn out" to be the most lucrative trade, and E11 restates Ackman's own description of it as his best investment, so part (a) is not settled by the evidence.