eBay is finally going to split its payment arm PayPal this year after CEO, John Donahoe fought off Carl Icahn in early 2014 on the same proposition. PayPal was recently reported to purchase Paydiant for approximately $280 million. Paydiant provides a platform enabling retailers to create their own mobile wallet apps, including payments, loyalty card and digital coupon support. This puts PayPal in direct competition with Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and Samsung’s recently acquired LoopPay.
Representing 2.77% of Omega’s portfolio value, Motorola Solutions Inc (NYSE:MSI)‘s stake stood at 2.47 million shares valued at $166 million. The stock is marginally up by 1.6% during last year. The $13.96 billion company designs, manufactures, and sells communications infrastructure, devices, system software and applications, and provides services associated with their use. Motorola Solutions Inc (NYSE:MSI)’s fourth quarter financial results included Earnings per Share (EPS) of $1.25, which was $0.14 ahead of estimates and $1.82 billion in revenues which beat estimates by $40 million.
The popularity of the stock among hedge funds improved slightly as 34 of them held positions in the company as compared to 32 a quarter earlier. William B. Gray of Orbis Investment Management held 17.97 million shares valued at $1.21 billion.
Moving on to Omega’s third largest technology holding, Loral Space & Communications Ltd. (NASDAQ:LORL), in which Mr. Cooperman’s stake consists of 973,100 shares valued at $76.60 million. Loral is a satellite communications company engaged in satellite manufacturing with ownership interests in satellite-based communications service. The company’s stock price is down by about 10% over the last 52 weeks. In late November last year, Bloomberg reported that the Canadian Public Sector Pension Investment Board was close to a $7 billion deal to buy Telesat, Canadian satellite network owner in which Loral Space & Communications Ltd. (NASDAQ:LORL) has a considerable stake. This would value Loral at $85/ share. Recently, Reuters reported that Loral had hired i-bank Perella Weinberg for help in selling its Telesat stake. Mark Rachesky of MHR Fund Management owns about 8.13 million shares of Loral valued at $639.89 million.
Let’s also take a look at Mr. Cooperman’s latest move in New Senior Investment Group Inc (NYSE:SNR), which held its IPO in late October last year, and the stock is down nearly 16% since then. The real estate investment trust (REIT) with a portfolio of senior housing properties across the United States reported revenues of $70.38 million in its fourth quarter financial results. Billionaire Israel Englander held some 411,000 shares of New Senior Investment Group at the end of 2014.
Disclosure: none
