By Wailin Wong
| Activist investor Carl Icahn has raised his stake in
Schaumburg-based
Motorola Inc. to 8.75 percent, according to a Friday filing with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Icahn and his investment vehicles last disclosed their Motorola holdings
in May 2008, reporting a 7.6 percent stake.

Although Icahn was once one of Motorola’s most vocal critics, waging
proxy battles and issuing sharp rebukes against the company’s
management, he has been quiet since a 2008 agreement put two of his
candidates on the board. Icahn had also pressed for a break-up of the
company, a plan that is now in progress and slated for the first quarter
of 2011. Last week, Motorola reported first-quarter earnings that
exceeded analysts’ expectations.

Motorola’s shares, which closed
Friday down 8 cents at $6.60, are 34 percent lower than when Icahn last
disclosed his stake in May 2008. However, the stock is up more than 60
percent since the beginning of 2009.