Allergan, Inc. (AGN) Investment Propels Bill Ackman To The Top Of Hedge Funds Rankings

Hedge funds had a horrendous year in 2014 seen by more than 461 being shut down with only 2% being able to make substantial returns to investors.  Despite the horrendous run, activist investor Bill Ackman of Pershing Square managed to come up on top having bet big on Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) according to Bloomberg’s Betty Liu.

Ackman now sits at the top of the hedge fund world having seen his investments in Botox maker Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) pay up with a 33% return. The return did not come that easily as Ackman was entangled in a bitter tussle with Allergan over a potential merger with Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc. (NYSE:VRX). Bloomberg’, Katrina Brooker, notes that Ackman year was full of drama as he sought to come up on top in terms of returns.

“Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) CEO David Pyott played it in such an amazing way that you sought of felt like it was a battle of two equals, and they both ended up winning. In the end and that was just the strangest twist in November when Allergan escaped Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc. (NYSE:VRX)’s Perishing Square bid,” said Mrs. Brooker.

Ackman has not had the smoothest of rides in the hedge fund space having seen his long position in J C Penney Company Inc. (NYSE:JCP) as well as a short position in Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) turn out disastrous resulting in millions of dollars in losses. Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) seems to have put Ackman’s woes in the market to rest with the acquisition of a further 10% stake in the company  turning out to be one of the best moves in 2014.

Brooker believes Ackman acquiring a 10% stake in the Botox maker was a kind of a provocative deal considering he was entangled in a bitter tussle over a merger with Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc. (NYSE:VRX).

“The analysts that I talked to remained shocked just as to how the deal came about. There are these questions about Pershing Square Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc. (NYSE:VRX) how they bought up shares of Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) prior to the deal announcement,” said Mrs. Brooker.

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