BlueMountain Capital, the hedge fund founded and managed by Andrew Feldstein and Stephen Siderow since 2003, disclosed on Tuesday its long equity holdings for the second quarter of 2014. The fund declared more than 200 equity positions, with a market value of more than $5.6 billion. Its portfolio is quite diversified but has a slight focus on financial (24%) and materials (21%) stocks. In this article, we will take a look at some of BlueMountain’s largest long stakes as of June 30, 2014.
The fund’s three largest bets are placed on put options, for either stocks or ETFs. However, the fourth most valuable position is in Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE:KODK), a $927 million market cap technology company that provides products and services in entertainment imaging and commercial films worldwide. Between April and June, BlueMountain increased its exposure to the company by 515%, and now owns 7.46 million shares of Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE:KODK). The stock is down more than 37% year-to-date, and trading well below industry average valuations; thus, one can understand why BlueMountain’s team believed it was a good time to buy the stock.
On the opposite sidewalk, the largest hedge fund shareholder of record (amongst those we track) as of the end of the first quarter, Jon Bauer’s Contrarian Capital, declared in late-July a drastic reduction in its exposure to of Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE:KODK). The fund disclosed ownership of 1.97 million shares, down from the 4.53 million that it held by the end of the first quarter.
Second in this list Con-way Inc (NYSE:CNW), a newcomer to BlueMountain’s equity portfolio. Over the second quarter, the fund acquired 2.48 million shares of the $2.9 billion market cap transportation, logistics and supply-chain management services provider. The fund’s position in Con-way Inc (NYSE:CNW) has a market value of more than $125 million, and boasts $0.10 per share in the form of quarterly dividends.
Another major hedge fund placing big stakes in Con-way Inc (NYSE:CNW) is Richard S. Pzena’s Pzena Investment Management, which slightly boosted its exposure to the company over the second quarter, and now owns 1.19 million shares.
Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) is last in this list. The $27.2 billion market cap oil refining and marketing company saw BlueMountain augment its exposure by 67%. The fund disclosed ownership of 2.45 million shares of Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO), worth more than $122 million.
Another fund that seems quite bullish about Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) is David Harding’s Winton Capital Management. Over the second quarter of the year, the fund started a position in the company, with 1.25 million shares.
Disclosure: Javier Hasse holds no position in any stocks or funds mentioned.
