Activist investor Jonathan Auerbach “Hounded” by Losses

#4 Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO)

 – Shares Owned by Hound Partners (as of March 31): 4.18 million

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $360 million

Hound Partners used the 17% drop in Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO)’s stock during the first quarter to boost its holding in the company by 36%. However, that decision doesn’t seem to be playing out well for the fund as Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO)’s stock has fallen further in the second quarter and currently trades down almost 25% year-to-date. Unlike Hound Partners, billionaire David E. Shaw‘s firm D.E. Shaw reduced its stake in the company during the first quarter, by 32% to 2.78 million shares. A large part of the decline that the petroleum refiner has seen this year has come on the back of rising crude oil prices, which investors fear will eat into the company’s margins. However, a lot of analysts feel that those fears are unfounded and cite the consistent growth displayed by the company’s marketing business as a reason why it can continue to perform well going forward despite the rally in crude oil prices.

#3 FleetCor Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FLT)

– Shares Owned by Hound Partners (as of March 31): 2.54 million

– Value of Holding (as of March 31): $378.22 million

Though Hound Partners reduced its stake in FleetCor Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FLT) by 6% during the first quarter, the company still represented the fund’s third-largest position in terms of value. The market capitalization of FleetCor Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:FLT) increased by fivefold in the period between 2011 and 2015. However, barring the correction they saw earlier this year, shares of the fuel cards and data solutions provider have remained largely range bound since the start of 2015. For its fiscal 2016 first quarter, the company reported EPS of $1.53 on revenue of 4414.30 million versus analysts’ estimate of EPS of $1.49 on revenue of $417.86 million. Following the earnings release, on May 5, analysts at Barclays reiterated their ‘Overweight’ rating on the stock, while upping their price target on it to $160 from $150, which represents potential upside of 6.5% from FleetCor Technologies, Inc.’s last trading price.