By Mauro Orru and Ian Walker

Hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman is resigning from Universal Music Group's board of directors, taking a step back from the record label behind Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga that he had pushed to list in the U.S.

Pershing Square Holdings, Ackman's investment holding company, said the billionaire was leaving the record label's board due to increasing demands on his time from other commitments, including his recent appointment as executive chairman at real-estate company Howard Hughes Holdings.

Ackman's withdrawal, which will be effective after Universal Music's annual general meeting on Wednesday, comes weeks after the billionaire said Pershing Square had decided to sell part of its position in Universal Music. The record label would remain the fund's largest position at about 17% of its portfolio, down from 27%, Ackman said in a post on X in March.

"Over the last three years, I have greatly enjoyed being a director of UMG as it has transitioned from a private company into a flourishing public enterprise," Ackman said. "The company is extremely well positioned for future growth and profitability under the superb leadership of Sir Lucian Grainge and the entire UMG team."

Universal Music shares fell 3% in Amsterdam after Ackman's resignation announcement. However, the stock is up more than 7% since the year began.

Ackman's shareholding in Universal Music decreased to just over 4.7% in March after Pershing Square funds sold part of their shareholdings in an accelerated bookbuild, according to the record label's 2024 financial report.

The billionaire had been pushing Universal Music to list in the U.S. In January, the company said it planned to launch a U.S. offering of some Pershing-owned shares.

Ackman said listing on a major U.S. exchange would be highly beneficial for the record label. Back in November, Ackman said he wanted to terminate Universal's Amsterdam listing after antisemitic attacks in the Dutch capital. At the time, Universal said he wasn't entitled to request that but potentially had the right to ask for a U.S. listing.

Universal Music has its operational headquarters in Santa Monica and its corporate headquarters in Hilversum, Netherlands. The label started trading on the Euronext Amsterdam in September 2021 after a spinoff from Vivendi, the conglomerate steered by the family of French billionaire Vincent Bollore.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com and Ian Walker at ian.walker@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 14, 2025 04:53 ET (08:53 GMT)

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