EMC’s Business Finance blog

The billionaire financier Kirk Kerkorian made a dramatic move on another Detroit automaker Monday with an announcement that he had acquired a 4.7 percent stake in the Ford Motor Company and planned a $170 million cash offer for an additional 20 million shares.

The surprising bid for a major stake in Ford follows earlier, unsuccessful attempts by Mr. Kerkorian to buy Chrysler and force General Motors into an alliance with foreign automakers.

Mr. Kerkorian’s Los Angeles-based investment arm, the Tracinda Corporation, said in a statement Monday that it had bought 100 million Ford shares since April 2 for about $690 million, giving the company a 4.7 percent stake in the auto company, which is based in Dearborn, Mich.