Billionaire Dan Loeb’s Biggest Q4 Moves Include Bank-Buying Spree, Selling Allergan (AGN)

Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX)

– Shares Owned by Third Point (as of December 31): 3 Million
– Value of Third Point’s Holding (as of December 31): $289.59 Million

Third Point added a 3-million share stake in Time Warner Inc to its portfolio in Q4, slotting in just behind David Abrams‘ Abrams Capital Management, which opened a position of 3.05 million shares. Time Warner Inc is holding a special shareholder meeting at 3 PM today as it puts its shareholders to the task of voting on the company’s proposed $86 billion merger with AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T). President Trump has been a vocal critic of the deal (and of Time Warner’s CNN in general), reportedly stating to a confidant in early-January that the deal “would consolidate too much power in the media industry”, despite AT&T primarily being a telecom provider. The issue of the merger was not discussed when Trump met with AT&T’s CEO Randall Stephenson on January 12. On the issue of CNN, AT&T has stated that it will not consider divesting that asset as a means to achieve regulatory approval for the merger.

Zayo Group Holdings Inc (NYSE:ZAYO)

– Shares Owned by Third Point (as of December 31): 7 Million
– Value of Third Point’s Holding (as of December 31): $230.02 Million

Speaking of telecom companies, Third Point also opened a 7 million-share position in Zayo Group during the fourth quarter, a company which provides fiber and bandwidth connectivity services in addition to cloud services. It’s been a rocky ride for the stock thus far in 2017, with it having fallen by nearly 5%. The company reported disappointing bookings in its fiscal second quarter financial results, with revenue missing estimates. Nonetheless, analysts remain confident that demand will rebound and suggest that the company could also make for an attractive acquisition target in the future. Zayo expects to close on its $1.42 billion deal for Electric Lightwave by the end of this quarter, which will expand its network in several key markets, including Seattle and San Francisco.

Allergan plc Ordinary Shares (NYSE:AGN)

Lastly is Allergan, which Dan Loeb and his team disposed of during the fourth quarter. Third Point’s position had consisted of 3.79 million shares on September 30, and was the fund’s third-most valuable at that time (though it also cut its position by 22% in the third quarter). The timing of its exit does not seem to have worked out well for the fund, as Allergan shares sank to 52-week lows during the fourth quarter, but have rebounded strongly this year, gaining over 18%.

Allergan announced on Monday that it will acquire CoolSculpting System developer Zeltiq Aesthetics Inc (NASDAQ:ZLTQ) for $2.47 billion. Allergan had previously been connected to Zeltiq’s peer Cynosure, Inc. (NASDAQ:CYNO), which fell following the news that Allergan would instead buy its rival. However, Cynosure was snatched up just a day later by Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX), as M&A activity in the aesthetics market heats up.

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