Hedge Fund Highlights: Ray Dalio, Wilbur Ross & Renaissance Technologies

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Ray Dalio — founder of world’s largest hedge fund — talks ego, his philosophies at work (CBS News)
In 1975, Ray Dalio founded Bridgewater Associates in his New York apartment. Now, it’s the world’s largest hedge fund, managing $150 billion. He reportedly took home nearly $4 billion in a single year. Dalio also has a philosophical take on the world. Last fall, he released a video on YouTube, explaining how he thinks the economy works. He said of the video, “It’s in 30 minutes a description of how I believe the economic machine works, in other words I believe the economy works like a machine. I believe most things work like a machine. I’m a market participant. I’m a global macro economic investor. And so it’s from — I think, a very practical perspective.”

BRIDGEWATER ASSOCIATES

Talmer Bancorp prices IPO at between $12.50 to $14.50 per share (Reuters)
Talmer Bancorp Inc, backed by billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, priced its initial public offering of common shares at between $12.50 and $14.50 per share, valuing the company at up to $1 billion. The offering of 15.6 million shares would raise up to $226 million. Ross, who also serves on the board of Talmer, has a stake of more than 24 percent in the bank holding company through WL Ross & Co., Manulife Asset Management (US) LLC and David Einhorn‘s hedge fund Greenlight Capital Inc are the other notable shareholders with a stake of more than 5 percent each in the company.

Indiegogo: Become Your Own Hedgefund with the Behavior Oriented Trading Robot (h+ Magazine)
Have you heard about Renaissance Technologies? They, along with other similar companies hire scientists, physicists, mathematicians, as well as computer scientists to work with proprietary and specialized algorithms.These algorithms are used to determine when to enter and exit markets, how much to invest in specific instruments, and more. The success of sophisticated traders is based on the use of science and technology, but, so far, the only way to obtain those kinds of tools was to work for a hedge fund yourself or to invest your own money into hiring services from a company like Renaissance. These services are of course very expensive.

Legg Mason Posts Profit of $81.7 Million in Fiscal Third Quarter (Bloomberg)
Legg Mason Inc (NYSE:LM), the money manager that has struggled with more than five years of net redemptions, posted a fiscal third-quarter profit after a loss a year earlier, as assets and fees tied to performance rose. Net income was $81.7 million, or 67 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with a loss of $453.9 million, or $3.45 a share, a year earlier, the Baltimore-based firm said today in a statement. Joseph A. Sullivan, who was named chief executive officer in February, has reorganized businesses to cut costs while vowing to stem withdrawals by focusing on Legg Mason’s product lineup and improving performance.

Hedge fund pair sail into the limelight (Irish Times)
Kinsale Capital Management, the Dublin hedge fund manager run by the low-key, high-powered former Merrill Lynch bankers Gearoid Doyle and Seán Ó’Flannagáin, is basking in a warm glow after collecting a prestigious gong. One of its funds, the Kinsale Compass Fund, has won the Global Equity Fund of the Year award at the EuroHedge awards. Its not exactly the Oscars, but for European hedge funds, it’s not far off it. The awards were doled out recently at a bash at London’s Grosvenor House hotel. Not too shabby.

Boosting defenses against activists (CNBC)






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