Billionaire Activist Dan Loeb Loses Money in Q3 but Remains Bullish on Stock Picks

In the second quarter, Third Point reduced its stake in Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 1.0 million shares and held 9.0 million shares at the end of June. The holding was its largest in terms of value and put a lot of pressure on the fund’s performance as Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)’s shares dropped by 9% in the third quarter. However, the stock gained 13% in the last month as Amgen reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter and increased its guidance for the full year. Under Loeb’s pressure, the biotech company has cut costs and raised its dividend, while last year, the investor tried to pursue Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) to split into two separate companies, saying that this move could boost the stock price by over 80% (read more details). Overall, 68 funds from our database held stakes equal to 3.60% of the company’s float at the end of June.

Dow Chemical Co (NYSE:DOW) was Third Point’s second-largest position, containing 23 million shares. Between July and September, the stock plunged by over 16% amid a broader market sell-off, but it is still over 13% in the green year-to-date. Billionaire Leon Cooperman’s Omega Advisors also mentioned Dow Chemical Co (NYSE:DOW) as one of its largest holdings in a recent conference call and projected a 12% growth rate for the company over the next three-to-five years.

Allergan PLC (NYSE:AGN) is one of Loeb’s long-term bets, the investor holding shares since the company was named Actavis. Allergan’s shares lost 10% in the third quarter, but many large investors maintain their bullish thesis on the stock. More specifically, Omega Advisors projects a 15% growth rate for the next three-to-five years, while Larry Robbins of Glenview Capital said that the company could be one of the winners amid the current issues with drug pricing, which would allow Allergan PLC (NYSE:AGN) to increase its portfolio at lower costs. Recently, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) has disclosed interest in buying Allergan PLC (NYSE:AGN), sparking a lot of talk and speculation, as well as concerns regarding the current tax policies that are driving companies out of the U.S.

In eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY), Third Point held over 19 million shares at the end of June, while the stock inched down by 4% in the third quarter. Loeb was one of the activists that pushed eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) to spin-off Paypal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) (Carl Icahn was another one). The stock gained even more popularity as the completion of the PayPal spinoff approached, with the number of funds bullish on eBay having appreciated by nine to 99 during the second quarter. In aggregate, these funds held 16% of eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY)’s outstanding stock at the end of June.

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