Marc Lasry and his fund, Avenue Capital, have struck an agreement with UBS Securities LLC to sell 1.4 million shares of YRC Worldwide Inc (NASDAQ:YRCW). According to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the transaction is set to be completed by August 11 at a nominal price of $19.71 per share, thus bringing $27.6 million into the Avenue Capital’s coffers. As a result, Lasry and his fund are left holding 5.87 million shares which account for 17.9% of the company’s common stock. Prior to this transaction, YRC Worldwide Inc (NASDAQ:YRCW) represented the second-largest holding of Avenue Capital, so why has Lasry decided to reduce his stake?
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YRC Worldwide Inc (NASDAQ:YRCW) is a provider of transportation services with a global presence and has a market cap of $658 million. The company has recently released its second quarter financial report, showing signs of improving financial health. YRC Worldwide posted revenues of $1.26 billion and earnings per share of $0.78, easily beating the estimates of $0.25 per share. For the current quarter, analysts expect revenues of $1.25 billion and earnings of $0.49 per share. Although the latest financial report is mostly positive, the company’s debts continue to pose problems, while the management has been working hard to avoid bankruptcy for several years now. Still, the company is not in a hurry to repay its debt and has chosen to invest the available cash to improve its fleet:
“I’m certain there will be a couple of hiccups […] but we’re going to continue to focus on increasing prices, we’re going to continue to double down on our investments in technology […] and continue to invest in our people,” said Jamie Pierson, Chief Financial Officer of YRC Worldwide.
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Frank Brosens, the manager of Taconic Capital, is a fan of YRC Worldwide Inc (NASDAQ:YRCW) and has initiated a position during the first quarter, amassing 1.27 million shares. During the same period, Israel Englander has increased his stake in this company by 11% to 447,076 shares, according to Millennium Management’s latest 13F filing. Ken Griffin on the other hand has dumped 80% of his stake and was left holding only 248,566 shares at the end of the first quarter.
With an equity portfolio worth approximately $1.7 billion, Marc Lasry has founded Avenue Capital in 1995 and has enjoyed great success as an asset manager. Whereas he started with $7 million in capital, currently Lasry has roughly $12.9 billion in assets under management. His biggest bet is Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co (NASDAQ:HMHC) a company that offers educational services across a large specter of media. In its latest 13F filing, Avenue Capital has disclosed the ownership of 5.73 million shares, with the position having remained flat during the first quarter of 2015. Lasry is also betting big on Meritor Inc (NYSE:MTOR) and holds 7.21 million shares, although he has chosen to slightly reduce his stake during the January-March period.
Disclosure: none.
