Five years after his on-air verbal brawl with Pershing Square's Bill Ackman over Herbalife, Carl Icahn said he made a billion dollars from his investment in the nutritional supplement maker.
"I enjoy a good fight, especially when I win it," Icahn said Thursday on CNBC's "Halftime Report." "On paper, I made a billion."
Icahn said his relationship with Ackman is friendly.
"I honestly, in a strange way, I thank Bill ... I wish him well," he said. "He called me up yesterday and congratulated me."
The billionaire investor added he has not sold a single Herbalife share.
"Herbalife management did an incredible job through this. It was a major distraction for Herbalife," he said. "I think Herbalife is a great company, makes great products."
Ackman told CNBC on Wednesday he exited his losing bearish bet against Herbalife, five years after his argument with Carl Icahn on CNBC.
The Icahn-Ackman fight occurred Jan. 25, 2013, while Ackman was being interviewed by telephone. Ackman was responding to attacks by Icahn the previous day over Ackman's claims that Herbalife was "a well-managed pyramid scheme."
Icahn then called in to the show, saying "Ackman is a liar" and he had "one of the worst reputations on Wall Street."
"I've really about had it with this guy," Icahn said. "He's like the crybaby in the schoolyard."
— CNBC's Liz Moyer contributed to this report.
WATCH: Icahn has not sold one single share of Herbalife
