Add Howard Marks to the List of Notable Investors Who Believe the Market Comeback has Gone Too Far (CNBC)
Billionaire investor Howard Marks joined a growing chorus of notable investors in warning that the market rebound has gone too far given the uphill battle of developing a cure for Covid-19 and its economic impact in the meanwhile. Specifically, Marks believes that markets will eventually face more turbulence once the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented, but nonetheless temporary support mechanisms fade, according to a Bloomberg News report.
Hedge Fund Manager With 10 Straight Years Of Positive Returns Says Stay Away From These Sectors (Forbes)
Christopher Brown of Aristides Capital joined the Contrarian Investor Podcast recently to discuss his investment strategy, which has produced positive returns every calendar year since 2008. In Brown’s view, healthcare and information technology stocks should not be treated as defensive investments that will protect portfolios in times of stress – especially after their recent run-up. There are reasons many companies in this sector are overvalued and could see their shares drop as the economy begins to see further difficulties from coronavirus.
Hedge Fund Traders Openly Rated Women Co-Workers, Lawsuit Claims (Bloomberg)
New York hedge fund Advent Capital Management LLC subjected a former junior investment associate to “relentless, egregious discrimination” and then fired her for complaining about it to the firm’s top executives, she alleged in a lawsuit. Male traders and portfolio managers at the firm ranked women on a 1-10 scale, called them demeaning names and classified them according to whether men would marry, kill or have sex with them, Courtney Robb said in the complaint, filed Monday in federal court in Manhattan.
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UK’s Richest Hedge Fund Manager Sees Fortune Swell by £1bn (Citywire.co.uk)
The UK’s richest hedge fund manager saw his wealth rise by around £1bn last year, according to the annual Sunday Times Rich list. Michael Platt climbed 11 places to 24th as his fortune climbed £1.1bn to £4.8bn on the strong performance of his Bluecrest Capital hedge fund, which returned 50% in 2019. The fund was closed clients four years ago but remains open as personal investment vehicle. It is understood that most of his return last year came from long positions in fixed income. Platt is one of the few people at the top end of the list to see their wealth grow in the pandemic crisis.
Check Out Stanley Druckenmiller’s Pandemic Portfolio – Studded with ‘Stay-at-Home’ Stocks (CNBC)
Hedge fund manager Stanley Druckenmiller piled into stocks that benefit from the coronavirus shutdown in the first quarter of the year, creating what appears to be the ultimate pandemic portfolio.
Nigeria Allowed Access to Hedge Fund Papers in $9.8 Billion Suit (Bloomberg)
A U.S. court granted Nigeria permission to request documents from VR Capital Group Ltd., the part owner of a company that received a $9.8 billion arbitration award the government is trying to overturn. U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer ordered in New York on May 14 that Nigeria can subpoena information from London-based hedge fund VR Capital, four subsidiaries and three of its directors. Nigeria’s anti-graft agency plans to use the data in its probe of British Virgin Islands-registered Process & Industrial Developments Ltd. and allegedly corrupt government officials.
Hedge Fund Performance Update: April 2020 (Preqin.com)
Following substantial losses in March, hedge funds made strong gains in April as global equity markets rebounded. The Preqin All-Strategies Hedge Fund benchmark returned +6.42%, compared with -9.20% the previous month. CTAs had another month of gains (+0.65%) and are the only fund type with a positive 2020 YTD return (+2.06%). This factsheet presents the hedge fund performance benchmarks for April 2020. Plus, the year to date and 12-month return figures for all top-level strategies, structures, denominations, and size classifications.
Hedge Fund Kings Flock to Gold as Inflation Set to Roar (Newsmax.com)
Forget plunging oil prices and a collapse in consumer spending. Some of the world’s most-prominent investors are raising alarm bells over the looming threat of inflation, and turning to gold for protection. Money printing by central banks and vast state stimulus packages are rekindling interest in one of the oldest stores of wealth. It’s a revival of a trade that became popular in the wake of the 2008 crisis, as money managers piled into gold for similar reasons, but were ultimately disappointed as inflation was kept in check. Yet the unprecedented scale of the government response to the coronavirus crisis is feeding the argument that this time will be different. Hedge fund luminaries including Paul Singer, David Einhorn, and Crispin Odey are among those bullish on gold, according to recent letters to investors. So are large asset managers like Blackrock Inc. and Newton Investment Management.
Notable Insider Buys: Bausch, TransDigm And More (Benzinga)
Here are some of the most noteworthy insider purchases reported in the past week. TransDigm: A TransDigm Group Incorporated (TDG) director indirectly added almost 372,000 shares of this aircraft component maker to his stake. At per-share prices ranging from $309.87 to $354.34, that totaled more than $125.18 million. Note that another director purchased 2,000 shares in the previous week. The company posted better than expected fiscal second-quarter earnings earlier this month. The stock ended last week’s trading at $325 per share, still within the director’s purchase price range. The share price is only up 3% or so since its year-to-date low in March. Bausch Health: Bausch Health Companies Inc (BHC) saw a director indirectly purchase nearly 5 million shares of this specialty pharmaceutical company last week at between $15.85 and $17.50 a share. That cost that director more than $83.25 million and raised his stake to almost 25.85 million shares.
Monday 5/18 Insider Buying Report: ZION, VCTR (Nasdaq.com)
On Wednesday, Zions Bancorporation’s Chairman, Harris H. Simmons, made a $1.06M buy of ZION, purchasing 40,000 shares at a cost of $26.43 a piece. So far Simmons is in the green, up about 13.2% on their purchase based on today’s trading high of $29.92. Zions Bancorporation is trading up about 10.6% on the day Monday. This purchase marks the first one filed by Simmons in the past year. And at Victory Capital Holdings, there was insider buying on Thursday, by Director James B. Hawkes who purchased 40,000 shares at a cost of $13.84 each, for a total investment of $553,600. Before this latest buy, Hawkes made one other buy in the past twelve months, purchasing $89,284 shares for a cost of $15.69 each. Victory Capital Holdings is trading up about 7.7% on the day Monday. So far Hawkes is in the green, up about 9.5% on their buy based on today’s trading high of $15.16.
The COB of Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ: SYBT) is Selling Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Today, the COB of Stock Yards Bancorp (SYBT), David Heintzman, sold shares of SYBT for $144.5K. In addition to David Heintzman, 6 other SYBT executives reported Sell trades in the last month. Based on Stock Yards Bancorp’s latest earnings report for the quarter ending March 31, the company posted quarterly revenue of $44.33 million and quarterly net profit of $13.23 million.
Insider Trading: May 18, 2020 (BIV.com)
Insider Thomas Garagan, officer. Company: B2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO). Shares owned: 1,586,924. Trade date: May 11. Trade total: $7,400,000. Trade: Sale of 1,000,000 shares at a price of $7.40 per share. Insider Roger Richer, officer. Company: B2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO). Shares owned: 350,000. Trade date: May 11. Trade total: $7,400,000. Trade: Sale of 1,000,000 shares at a price of $7.40 per share.
Cable One Inc (CABO) COB, President and CEO Julia M. Laulis Sold $1.4 million of Shares (Guru Focus)
COB, President and CEO of Cable One Inc., Julia M. Laulis, sold 769 shares of CABO on 05/15/2020 at an average price of $1805 a share. The total sale was $1.4 million. Cable One Inc mainly provides broadband, voice, and video services. It derives revenue from the provision of broadband, voice, and video services to residential and business customers.
Former Kestrel Capital CEO Andre DeSimone Sues CMA Over KenolKobil Insider Trading Implication (Kahawatungu.com)
Former Kestrel Capital CEO Andre DeSimone has moved to the Capital Markets Tribunal to sue the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) for implicating him in the KenolKobil insider trading scandal. DeSimone was accused of leaking price-sensitive material relating to the takeover of KenolKobil by Rubis Energie to Aly-Khan Satchu and Kunal Bid, both stockbroking agents. Desimone resigned in April last year, bringing to a halt his 24-year reign in the company after he was mentioned in the scandal.
