Hedge Funds Betting Against S&P 500: Good News for Bitcoin and Crypto? (Blockworks.co)
As hedge funds increase bearish bets on US equities, with S&P 500 futures short positions at a roughly 12-year high, experts are pondering the potential impacts on the crypto market. The S&P 500 COT Index, which represents the difference in net positions between large non-commercial speculators and large commercial hedgers, is now at its lowest point since Sept. 19, 2011.
Norway Fund to Vote Against Enel Chairman Candidate Paolo Scaroni (Reuters)
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest single stock market investor, will vote against Paolo Scaroni becoming chair of the board at utility Enel (ENEI.MI), adding to a growing revolt over the Italian Treasury’s nomination. The Norway fund joins other Enel shareholders which are opposed to Scaroni’s appointment because of concerns over governance at the state-backed utility. The fund will vote in favour of Marco Mazzucchelli, it said on its website on Friday. He is a former banker who is the candidate for chairman proposed by hedge fund Covalis Capital in a challenge to Italy’s Treasury, Enel’s largest shareholder with almost a 24% stake.
ChatGPT Can Pick Stocks Better than Your Fund Manager (CNN)
A basket of stocks selected by ChatGPT, a chatbot powered by artificial intelligence (AI), has far outperformed some of the most popular investment funds in the United Kingdom. Between March 6 and April 28, a dummy portfolio of 38 stocks gained 4.9% while 10 leading investment funds clocked an average loss of 0.8%, according to an experiment conducted by financial comparison site finder.com. It wouldn’t “be long until large numbers of consumers try to use [ChatGPT] for financial gain,” Jon Ostler, Finder’s CEO, said in a statement earlier this week.
Friday 5/5 Insider Buying Report: STEL, GD (Nasdaq.com)
On Wednesday, Stellar Bancorp’s Director, Joe Penland Sr., made a $1.72M buy of STEL, purchasing 79,512 shares at a cost of $21.68 a piece. So far Penland Sr. is in the green, up about 5.3% on their buy based on today’s trading high of $22.82. Stellar Bancorp is trading up about 2.6% on the day Friday. And on Tuesday, Director Mark Malcolm bought $1.01M worth of General Dynamics, buying 4,700 shares at a cost of $214.47 each. This purchase marks the first one filed by Malcolm in the past year. General Dynamics is trading up about 0.7% on the day Friday. Bargain hunters are able to pick up GD even cheaper than Malcolm did, with the stock trading as low as $209.01 at last check today which is 2.5% below Malcolm’s purchase price.
Microsoft, Snap And 2 Other Stocks Insiders Are Selling (Benzinga)
Microsoft: The Trade: Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) EVP, Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff sold a total of 30,000 shares at an average price of $306.09. The insider received around $9.18 million from selling those shares. Biogen: The Trade: Biogen Inc. (BIIB) EVP, Human Resources Ginger Gregory sold a total of 2,681 shares at an average price of $300.00. The insider received around $804.3 thousand from selling those shares.
