Will News from Japan Please Investors in These Two Companies?

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In another piece of news, Japan Tabacco is seeking to expand into other markets as the Japanese cigarette market has been slowly shrinking. According to a report from Bloomberg, it is looking to buy assets from Reynolds American, Inc. (NYSE:RAI), including some of the Natural American Spirit brand. Although in advanced talks, according to the source, the representatives of both companies have still declined to comment, with the size of the deal still subject to change. Reynolds American has been on a spending spree itself, completing the acquisition of Lorillard Inc in June, in a deal worth $25 billion. The deal got Reynolds the Newport cigarette brand and other assets that the company has already sold to Imperial Tobacco Group.

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Hedge fund sentiment towards Reynolds American, Inc. (NYSE:RAI) has significantly improved during the second quarter of 2015, as the number of funds holding the stock increased to 41 from 40, while the total value of their holdings has surged by 152% over the quarter to $1.26 billion. However, their holdings accounted for only 3.2% of the company’s outstanding stock. The biggest stake among the hedge funds that we track is held by Mason Capital Management, run by Kenneth Mario Garschina, who has built a position that amasses 5.67 million shares during the quarter. Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson are also bullish on the stock and have boosted their investment by 34%, taking Adage Capital Management’s holding to 619,207 shares. Ken Griffin, on the other hand, saw fit to dump a fifth of his stake, leaving his fund with just 291,882 shares.

Disclosure: none.

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