Citadel Made $16 Billion For Investors Last Year, Breaking Hedge-Fund Records (The Wall Street Journal)
Hedge-fund giant Citadel made $16 billion for its investors last year, the largest annual gain ever made by a hedge-fund firm, according to research from LCH Investments. Citadel’s gain, which was calculated after fees, is larger than John Paulson‘s 2007 gain made during the subprime mortgage crisis, according to LCH Investments, part of the Edmond de Rothschild Group. The figures aren’t adjusted for inflation.
Billionaire Ackman Invests in Bremont in Boost for UK Watchmaker (Bloomberg)
Billionaire hedge fund manager and activist investor Bill Ackman is buying a minority stake in Bremont as the UK luxury watchmaker looks to expand in the fast-growing US market. Ackman is teaming with Bremont’s controlling shareholder, Hellcat LP, to invest a combined £48.4 million ($60 million) in Bremont, the watchmaker said in an emailed statement.
Activist Investor Elliott Management Takes Stake in Salesforce – Sources (Reuters)
Activist investor Elliott Management Corp has made a multi-billion dollar investment in cloud-based software firm Salesforce Inc (CRM.N), according to people familiar with the matter. It is unclear what Elliott, one of the world’s most prominent activist investors, is pushing for at Salesforce. “We look forward to working constructively with Salesforce to realize the value befitting a company of its stature,” Jesse Cohn, managing partner at Elliott, told Reuters.
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Rishi Sunak’s Old Hedge Fund Boss, Who Paid Himself $1.9 Million a Day Last Year, Wants Alphabet to Lay Off More Staff and Slash Pay (Fortune)
Britain’s highest-earning investor has called on Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai to cut thousands more jobs than the tech giant announced it would eliminate last week. On Friday, Pichai announced the “difficult decision” had been made to eliminate around 12,000 jobs—or 6% of the firm’s global workforce. However, in a letter dated Jan. 20, Christopher Hohn —who revealed toward the end of last year that his hedge fund held a $6 billion stake in the Google parent company— wrote to Pichai to urge the tech giant to take the job cuts much further.
Point72 Granted UK Regulatory Approval at Third Time of Asking (Hedge Week)
Steve Cohen‘s Point72 has been granted regulatory approval in the UK, a decade after his previous firm paid a record $1.8 billion in fines after pleading guilty to insider trading charges, according to a report by the Financial Times. The Financial Conduct Authority had turned down Point72’s applications two previous occasions following SAC Capital‘s sanctions in 2013, ruling in 2018 that Cohen was not ‘fit and proper’ to offer his new fund to UK investors.
Waterland Amasses $4.4bn Across Two Funds (Opalesque.com)
European private equity house Waterland has hauled in €4bn ($4.4bn) of new capital across its ninth institutional flagship fund, Waterland Private Equity Fund IX (WPEF IX) at € 3.5 billion, alongside Waterland Partnership Fund I (WPF I) at € 500 million. WPEF IX expects to make investments in medium-sized companies in fragmented growth markets in Europe to finance organic and acquisitive growth. WPF I expects to make minority investments in a very select number of Waterland portfolio companies when these are exited.
Ritchie Woos IAA Deal Opponents With More Cash, Special Dividend (Bloomberg)
Jeffrey Smith to join company’s board if deal goes through. IAA holder Ancora reverses opposition; shares jump 7.5%. Canadian auction company Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc. will boost the cash portion of its takeover offer for IAA Inc. and accept a $500 million investment from Starboard Value LP to help fund the deal. Ritchie’s new bid is the equivalent of $44.40 per IAA share, based on Friday’s market close. The change is an attempt to appease investors who didn’t like the original terms. Ancora Holdings Group, which owns 4% of IAA and opposed the initial deal, has agreed to vote in favor, the companies said.
Hedge Fund Eisler Capital Hires Damien Bombelli – Sources (Reuters)
Eisler Capital has recruited Damien Bombelli, whose background in commodities could help the hedge fund bolster a less profitable part of its business, according to one source with knowledge of the move and a regulator filing. Bombelli, who has worked at investment firms and banks including Millennium Capital Management and JP Morgan Chase & Co., will join the $3.5 billion fund in a role allowing him to deal with client funds, according to the website of Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Top Hedge Funds Earned Sharply Less for Clients in 2022, LCH Data Shows (Reuters)
The 20 best performing hedge fund managers earned $22.4 billion for investors in 2022, marking their slimmest gains since 2016 as many firms, including Tiger Global Management, struggled with slumping financial markets, LCH Investments data show. The top 20 managers, led by Ken Griffin‘s Citadel, Bridgewater Associates and D.E. Shaw Group, made less than half of the $65.4 billion the group returned in 2021 when rising stock prices led to a record return. In comparison, they made $63.5 billion in 2020 and $59.3 billion in 2019.
Monday 1/23 Insider Buying Report: DAL, JPM (Nasdaq.com)
At Delta Air Lines, a filing with the SEC revealed that on Wednesday, Director Francis S. Blake purchased 12,880 shares of DAL, at a cost of $38.58 each, for a total investment of $496,904. Blake was up about 1.9% on the buy at the high point of today’s trading session, with DAL trading as high as $39.30 in trading on Monday. Delta Air Lines is trading trading flat on the day Monday. And at JPMorgan Chase, there was insider buying on Thursday, by Director Mellody L. Hobson who bought 375 shares at a cost of $134.53 each, for a trade totaling $50,448. JPMorgan Chase is trading up about 0.3% on the day Monday. So far Hobson is in the green, up about 0.7% on their purchase based on today’s trading high of $135.51.
Around $10M Bet On This Biotechnology Stock? Check Out These 3 Stocks Insiders Are Buying (Benzinga)
Lifecore Biomedical: The Trade: Lifecore Biomedical, Inc. (LFCR) 10% owner Joshua Landes acquired a total of 627,746 shares an average price of $7.97. To acquire these shares, it cost around $5 million. Zymeworks: The Trade: Zymeworks Inc. (ZYME) 10% owner Ecor Capital LLC acquired a total of 985,100 shares at an average price of $9.84. To acquire these shares, it cost around $9.7 million.
Apple Executives Sold Stock in 2022, but Tim Cook Held Off (Barron’s)
Amid last year’s market tumult, several Apple AAPL +3.19% executives sold more stock by dollar volume than in 2021, but CEO Tim Cook held on to what he had. He hasn’t unloaded any of the shares since 2021, when the stock was soaring. Cook recently made headlines when Apple (ticker: AAPL) reduced his compensation, at least in part at the CEO’s request. Cook will have a target compensation package of $49 million in 2023, down from a target of $84 million in 2022.
