Goldman-Backed Pelham’s Hedge Fund Said to Lose 10% in June (Bloomberg)
Pelham Capital’s main hedge fund lost about 10 percent in June as the U.K.’s shock decision to exit the European Union sparked turmoil in global equity markets, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The losses in Pelham Long/Short Fund, which managed 3.8 billion euros ($4.2 billion) at the end of May, left it down about 9 percent in the first half of the year, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. A spokesman for Pelham Capital declined to comment.
Activist Fund Barington Withdraws Nominees For Chico’s Board (Reuters)
Activist hedge fund Barington Capital Group L.P. said on Friday it was withdrawing its nominees to the board of women’s apparel retailer Chico’s FAS Inc (CHS.N), days after two major proxy advisers backed the company’s nominees. Barington, which owns 1.5 percent of Chico’s shares, said it expects the company to deliver on its promises to stockholders, adding it would monitor Chico’s performance. (prn.to/29IeV0y). Barington’s decision brings to end a vocal fight in which the hedge fund said it was responsible for the retailer’s progress, a claim which Chico’s denied saying improvements had begun well before it started “substantively engaging” with Barington.
Distressed Funds Set For Big Stakes in Gulf Keystone After Debt Swap (Reuters)
Distressed debt funds will become big shareholders in troubled oil firm Gulf Keystone (GKP.L) after bondholders agreed to swap $500 million of debt for equity, wiping out some of the world’s top funds as shareholders. Sothic Capital, a London-based fund led by former distressed specialists from JP Morgan, is among the bondholders that will end up with a significant stake, according to sources close to the company and bondholders. Other such bondholders are GLG Partners, part of hedge fund Man Group, and investment fund Taconic Capital. Sothic did not respond to telephone calls. GLG and Taconic were not available for immediate comment.
Sears Finds A New Way To Rake In Cash (New York Post)
Sears Chief Executive Eddie Lampert has finally figured out how to make money off his retail chain — and it has nothing to do with getting more fannies into stores. The hedge fund mogul, who owns Sears and Kmart, is turning a profit in a little-known company offshoot that delivers and installs appliances for its store and a handful of rivals. Innovel Solutions, which was called Sears Logistics until Lampert renamed it two years ago, is actually growing and doing something very strange for a Sears asset: It’s not losing money. The 1,100-truck delivery service has signed up Costco as a customer — so when a shopper at the wholesale club orders a washer or refrigerator and has it delivered, a Sears Holdings-operated truck and driver drops it off, though the buyer doesn’t know it.
