NEW YORK, May 15 - Diego Della Valle, the chairman and chief executive of Italian luxury shoe and bag maker Tods SpA (TOD.MI), has acquired a 5.9 percent stake in U.S. department store chain Saks Inc (SKS.N) over the last few months.

According to a filing on Friday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Della Valle and a limited partnership called C.S.A.P.A. acquired 8,480,000 shares of Saks through a series of purchases stretching from February 20 to May 7.

Della Valle paid about $30,330,726 for the stake, according to the filing.

In late November the board of Saks, known for its flagship Saks Fifth Avenue store in New York City, took steps to protect itself from a takeover after billionaire investor Carlos Slim Helu reported a 17.8 percent stake in it, making him the company's biggest shareholder. (Reporting by Martinne Geller; Editing by Richard Chang)