Glenview Capital Lost $2 Billion in Assets in About Nine Months (Bloomberg)
Glenview Capital Management lost about $2 billion in assets in less than a year as investors fled a fund that began charging fees after it was initially free. The hedge fund firm founded by Larry Robbins managed $7.7 billion as of March 1, according to a regulatory filing, down from $10 billion in June of last year. At its peak in 2017, the firm ran about $12 billion.
GOP Megadonor Paul Singer Rallies Conservatives: ‘Socialism is on the March Again’ (CNBC)
Republican megadonor and hedge fund executive Paul Singer went into attack mode at a dinner honoring Education Secretary Betsy DeVos this week, targeting what he described as a rising threat of socialism within the Democratic Party. The comments offered a glimpse into the mentality of a powerful GOP donor as he decides how he’s going to contribute to the 2020 election. Singer is a billionaire and the founder of Elliott Management.
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Icahn Discloses U.S. Probe into Sale of Manitowoc Shares: Filing (Reuters)
BOSTON (Reuters) – Federal prosecutors in Manhattan asked billionaire investor Carl Icahn’s company for information about trades in crane maker Manitowoc, Icahn Enterprises disclosed in a regulatory filing on Thursday, in its first acknowledgement of such a probe. Icahn Enterprises said it received a subpoena after critics questioned the timing of Manitowoc stock sales Icahn, who briefly served as an unpaid adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, made before his administration announced steep steel tariffs in March 2018. Questions had swirled about whether the sales were prompted by inside information about Trump’s plans.
BlueMountain Is Liquidating Its $1 Billion Quant Portfolio (Bloomberg)
BlueMountain Capital Management is liquidating its $1 billion computer-driven portfolio, as it shifts back to focus on its roots: human-run fixed income and credit. The hedge fund’s outside spokesman Tom Vogel confirmed that BlueMountain is selling all of the positions in its quantitative portfolio, but wouldn’t comment on the size of the book. However, two people familiar with the matter say it’s about $1 billion. The systematic portfolio gained 4.4 percent last year, Vogel said. It fell about 1 percent in 2017, according to one of the people.
These are the Stocks Warren Buffett would Buy If He Were a Quant (CNBC)
If Warren Buffett were a quant, what would his perfect investing formula be and which stocks would he buy? For the 88-year-old “Oracle of Omaha,” stock picking has always been about finding the intrinsic value. He’s long been a champion of long-term concentrated bets on big, value companies like Coca-Cola and Bank of America. But if one were to translate his investing gospel into specific quantitative factors and apply them to models powered by artificial intelligence, this is what his portfolio may look like.
Scaramucci Says He’ll Back Trump in 2020 Despite Buttigieg Tweet (Bloomberg)
Financier Anthony Scaramucci says he’ll back the president’s re-election in 2020 — despite tweeting earlier Thursday in support of Democrat Pete Buttigieg and saying some administration policies are bad for business. Scaramucci tweeted that Buttigieg, who would be the first openly gay presidential nominee, “has already won for what he’s done for young #LGBTQ people across America.” Buttigieg and his husband, Chase Buttigieg, are featured on this week’s cover of Time magazine.
