Inside the Trade: What Bill Ackman Sees in Valeant and Allergan (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
When William Ackman took the stage at the AXA Equitable Auditorium in Midtown Manhattan on April 22, investors were still digesting the news that his firm, Pershing Square Capital Management, had amassed a 9.7 percent stake in Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN), an Irvine, California-based specialty pharmaceuticals company. But Ackman’s two- hour, 110-slide PowerPoint presentation had very little to do with Allergan; instead it focused almost entirely on Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX), a Laval, Quebec-based company with which Pershing Square is teaming up to try to acquire the maker of Botox…
Hedge Fund Compensation Takes a Dive (ai-CIO)
UK-based hedge fund managers have seen a sharp decline in compensation over the last two years, according to salary data tracker Emolument. The median base salary for director-level professionals fell from £120,000 ($199,000) in 2012 to £101,000 in 2013. This year, it has dropped again to £90,000. “Over the last few years since 2008, hedge fund managers have been more willing to show flexibility when it comes to management fees, which is why base salaries have been eroding thus,” said Robert Benson, the data firm’s CEO.
Hedge Fund Manager & “Martha Stewart of Marijuana” Co-Hosts The Global Cannabis Summit (HedgeCo)
Cheryl Shuman, the first Cannabis entrepreneur to manage a $100 million hedge fund to invest in the cannabis businesses, has been called upon to consult and co-host at the GreenRush Financial Conference being held in Seattle, Washington on September 23, 2014. Her private medical cannabis collective, “The Beverly Hills Cannabis Club” is unlisted and membership is by referral only. Through her personal relationships and connections within Hollywood and the media, Cheryl Shuman has been named as one of the most influential women in the cannabis reform movement by international media.
Citigroup faces curbs on hedge fund sales (eFinancialNews)
The curbs, which haven’t previously been reported, result from the August 5 approval of a settlement between Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and the Securities and Exchange Commission of claims related to the bank’s earlier sale of certain debt products. The setback for Citigroup is partly due to timing. Other banks with similar settlements have been able to escape the restrictions because they came before a change in the law last year. Over the past two weeks, Citigroup has been sending letters to hedge fund firms informing them that the bank is no longer able to steer investors to their funds. In the letter, Citigroup said it is working to resolve the issue with the SEC. Under the rules, the SEC has to issue a waiver to allow Citigroup to resume hedge fund sales to clients.
Gin Lane property on the market for first time in 50 years (TheRealDeal)
A beachfront property on Southampton’s Gin Lane will hit the market for the first time in more than 50 years with an asking price of $50 million. The 4-acre parcel is next door to Wooldon Manor, which Scott A. Bommer, founder of hedge fund SAB Capital, bought for $75 million and then almost immediately sold for more than $80 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. Tim Davis of Corcoran Group, who handled the sale for Bommer, will also represent the owner of the property, William G. McKnight, according to the newspaper.
Cramer’s winning stock roster (CNBC)
Aurelius: ‘Argentine leaders have chosen to be outlaws’ (BuenosAiresHerald)
Hedge fund Aurelius Capital Management has slammed Argentina’s proposal to change the jurisdiction of restructured debt to Buenos Aires, in a move that the holdout investor called the nation’s “latest plan to evade and violate US court orders”. “Argentina’s leaders have literally chosen to be outlaws. They have chronically flouted US court orders, lied to our courts, and proclaimed utter disdain for our courts,” fired the vulture fund, in a statement released today. Aurelius, alongside Paul Singer’s NML Capital, is one of the plaintiffs in the litigation held against Argentina presided over by judge Thomas Griesa in New York.
Goldman Vet May Get Blackstone Cash For New Hedge Fund (Finalternatives)
A former Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) trader is in seed-investment talks with the The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX). Jason Brown’s Arkkan Capital Management may win the backing of the alternative investments giant, Bloomberg News reports. If he gets it, it would be only the second time that Blackstone has thrown its support behind an Asian hedge fund since the financial crisis. Arkkan will focus on Asia, but will be permitted to invest globally. The new firm is based in Hong Kong.
David Einhorn Owns $189 Million Of This “Boring” Stock (Nasdaq)
Although the market often looks to the world’s top investors for direction on highly-publicized stocks, investing gurus can also lead us to great companies we might never hear about otherwise. Take the famous hedge fund manager David Einhorn, founder and president of Greenlight Capital, which manages an investment portfolio of more than $7 billion. In Greenlight’s latest 13-f filing for the second quarter, Einhorn revealed he’d more than doubled his position in what most investors would consider a relatively obscure and rather boring technology stock: Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX).
Billionaire Arnold’s Pension Push Makes Him Workers’ Bane (BusinessWeek)
When Kentucky, with the country’s second-lowest funded pension system, set out to bolster the plan last year, it sought recommendations from Pew Charitable Trusts, funded in part by Houston billionaire John Arnold. …Arnold, 40, a former hedge-fund manager and Enron Corp. commodities trader, has inserted the Houston-based Laura and John Arnold Foundation into political fights over how to deal with the rising cost of state and local government pensions. A Democrat who says he has raised money for President Barack Obama, Arnold sees such benefits as unsustainable.
Avoid the Hedge Funds’ ETF Termite Problem (Bloomberg)
Some of the smartest investors are bad role models in their choice of exchange-traded funds, which are often celebrated for their low costs. The deadline for large investment managers to disclose portfolios to the Securities and Exchange Commission recently passed, and investors have pored over their buys and sells. One instructive part of how the big money invests gets ignored, though. A lot of hedge funds, and institutions in general, own some of the most expensive ETFs.
Recommended Reading:
Talisman Energy Inc. (USA) (TLM)’s Options See Unusual Activity
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.A) Fined $900,000 For Failure To Report Transaction
