Hedge Fund and Insider Trading News: Eddie Lampert, Steven Cohen, Synergy CHC Corp (SNYR), Marijuana Company Of America Inc (MCOA), Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. (CBRL), and More

Kmart Was Once Rescued from Bankruptcy by Eddie Lampert. It’s Unclear Whether it will Happen Again (CNBC)
Much has changed in retail over the past 16 years. Amazon has risen and towering giants like Toys R Us have fallen. Kmart, though, finds itself exactly where it was in 2002: bankrupt and looking for a savior. The discount store filed for bankruptcy for the first time in January 2002, the result of a heavy debt-load, management missteps and crushing competition from Target and Walmart. It was saved, though, by hedge fund guru Eddie Lampert, who saw in the retailer valuable real estate and opportunity for revival. He bought the bankrupt company’s debt through his hedge fund ESL Investments, paving the way for him to become its owner once it emerged.

Opinion: You’re Not Alone: Hedge Fund Manager Steven Cohen is Suffering in the Stock Market Too (MarketWatch.com)
Billionaire Steven Cohen is among the most famous hedge fund managers in the world. His SAC Capital is said to have returned 30% annually for more than 20 years since its inception in 1992. His net worth is more than $12 billion, and he made this money mostly by buying and selling stocks. Earlier this month, Cohen disclosed owning 8.2% of SunOpta Inc. STKL, +0.84% and SunOpta’s stock promptly jumped as much as 7% and trading volume doubled following the disclosure.

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Hedge Funds in Brazil Are Doing Just Fine. Just Ask Bahia (Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg) — Brazilian investors are flocking to Bahia. Not the sunny, coastal state in the nation’s northeast, but an asset manager that had around 7.7 billion reais ($1.98 billion) in net inflows in its two main funds this year. The amount puts it among the Brazilian hedge-fund firms with the most new money coming in, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “Our performance got better, our team more experienced and we got more well-known, which brought in exponential inflows,” Gustavo Daibert, a partner responsible for equities strategies at the firm said in an interview at Bahia’s headquarters in Rio de Janeiro. “Today, the only reason we’re not bringing in more money is because we decided to close some funds, but demand is still very strong.”

Edward Lampert Won’t Serve as Stalking Horse for Sears (The Wall Street Journal)
Edward Lampert Won’t Serve as Stalking Horse for Sears Sears Holdings Corp. will hit the auction block without selecting a lead bidder for its stores amid criticism from creditors unhappy with a bid by the retailer’s chairman, Edward Lampert.