Editor’s Note: Related tickers: Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA), Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN), Barrick Gold Corporation (USA) (NYSE:ABX), J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP), Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF)
Synergy Health fills gap left by Vinik hedge fund (BizJournals)
The Synergy Health plc relocation to the SunTrust Financial Centre will not help downtown Tampa’s office space absorption. The surgical sterilization provider is moving into the 20,000-square-foot space recently vacated by Vinik Asset Management Tampa Bay Lightning Owner Jeff Vinik was hailed last summer when he moved his Boston-based hedge fund to the 31st floor of the downtown tower. But Vinik closed the fund in May due to poor performance.
Russian Tech Giant Sells Facebook Shares for $525 Million (NYTimes)
More than a year after Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)’s botched initial public offering, investors are now reaping rewards. On Thursday, the Russian Internet company Mail.ru, which is owned by the billionaire Alisher Usmanov, announced that it had sold its remaining stake in Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) for around $525 million. The Russian company, whose owner is one of the country’s richest men, initially bought its stake in Facebook in 2009 for around $200 million, and has had holdings in a number of other Internet start-ups in the United States, including the online game company Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) and the daily deals Web site Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN).
U.S. hedge fund demands breakup of Barrick, additions to its board (VancouverSun)
A U.S. hedge fund is making a renewed call for changes at Barrick Gold Corporation (USA) (NYSE:ABX), calling for the breakup of the company and the addition of a mining engineer and geologist to its board. Mike Morris, principal and founder of Two Fish Management, said Wednesday that there is no compelling reason for Barrick Gold Corporation (USA) (NYSE:ABX) to own a worldwide conglomerate of gold mines. “The market is essentially assigning a massive conglomerate discount to the company,” he said Wednesday.
Lonsec highlights hedge fund classification concerns (FinancialStandard)
Investment research house Lonsec has highlighted unintended consequences of ASIC’s proposed new rules affecting hedge funds, which could see investors increase the risk in their portfolios. ASIC Regulatory Guide 240, which was released in September 2012, aimed to raise disclosure requirements for hedge funds. The requirements had been due to take effect from May 2013, but in response to additional industry feedback the start date has been postponed to 1 February 2014 to allow for further consultation between the regulator and industry players.
SAC forfeiture case delayed as firm raises bonuses (StamfordAdvocate)
SAC Capital Advisors, the hedge fund firm that is facing federal insider-trading charges and a money laundering lawsuit, is raising 2014 bonuses for its portfolio managers by 3.5 percentage points to help retain employees, a person with knowledge of the decision. The increase, announced to employees in meetings Wednesday, will be paid to equity, macroeconomic and quantitative-trading portfolio managers, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private.
Arrested hedge fund founder a prominent philanthropist (BizJournals)
Jim Bisenius, the hedge fund manager whose arrest for soliciting prostitution made national headlines Wednesday, is a prominent philanthropist. Bisenius and his wife, Jan, gave $1 million in 2010 to the Master’s Plan Foundation, a private foundation that shares the same Portland address as Common Sense Investment Management, the fund of hedge funds Bisenius founded in 1991.
Is this hedge fund using its ‘common sense?’ (CNBC)
Bill Ackman’s admirable and refreshing antics (SDDT)
The word on Wall Street is that Bill Ackman, the billionaire hedge-fund manager, has jumped the shark. Between a $500 million loss on an almost $1 billion investment in J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP), and more than $300 million in losses on a billion-dollar-plus short position in Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF), Ackman has wigged out, the whisperers say. His hedge-fund brethren are all too eager to proclaim Ackman and Pershing Square Capital Management LP, the hedge fund he runs, a finished piece of business, torn asunder by his unique brand of arrogance, hubris and bull-headedness.
Here’s What Billionaire Value Hunter Carl Icahn Is Buying (DailyFinance)
Every quarter, many money managers have to disclose what they’ve bought and sold, via “13F” filings. Their latest moves can shine a bright light on smart stock picks. Today let’s look at investing giant Carl Icahn, who has made billions, partly by taking large positions in companies and pushing for change in them. These companies have included Texaco, RJR Nabisco, and Imclone. He’s also drawn to companies in or near bankruptcy, wanting to make them more valuable in order to sell them at a higher price.
Nouriel Roubini told to remove hot tub from roof of Manhattan penthouse (Telegraph)
Mr Roubini, a senior economic adviser to Bill Clinton, reportedly bought the loft apartment in 2010 for $5.5 million (£3.5m) and installed a hot tub, deck and party room with a bar on the roof. However, he did not seek approval from the Department of Buildings, which – after a complaint in February – has now ordered him to remove the additions to his terrace. “The roof is approved for use as a terrace according to the building’s certificate of occupancy,” said Kelly Magee, spokeswoman for the department.
Everything Alternative Investors Never Thought to Ask (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Last month, in a New Yorker story explaining how the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act will lift the 80-year ban on marketing private investment funds, Timothy Spangler, a lawyer, professor and blogger, compared alternative funds — and/or the people to run them — to creatures that suck blood and hide from daylight. “By including hedge funds and private-equity funds as beneficiaries of the JOBS Act, Obama has signaled that you have less to fear from a vampire if you can actually see him,” he wrote.
Man Versus Machine: How Humans Trumped Computers in August (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Humans clearly outperformed computers during August’s market swoon. A sampling of hedge funds that have already reported results for the most recent month indicate that long-short equity funds, macro funds and multistrategy funds that rely on good old-fashioned fundamental research — and people to pull the trigger on investment decisions — did a very good job of preserving their investors’ capital. In other words, these hedge funds behaved like hedge funds.
End of Ban on Hedge Fund Advertising Likely to Increase Demand from Self-Directed IRA & Solo 401(k) Plan Investors, According to IRA Financial Group Attorney (PRWeb)
IRA Financial Group, the leading facilitator of self-directed IRA LLC & Solo 401(k) plan solutions is expecting an increase in interest from its self directed IRA LLC and Solo 401(k) Plan in hedge fund investments due to the end of the eight year ban on advertising. According to Adam Bergman, an in-house tax attorney with the IRA Financial Group, the hedge fund advertising ban will likely help clarify the strategies used by hedge-fund managers and help explain some of the potential benefits of using retirement funds to make hedge fund investments.”
