George Soros Picked Up Shares of Coursera, and You Should, Too (InvestorPlace)
I certainly don’t recommend mindlessly mimicking the trades of other people, even if they’re billionaires. However, one investing legend’s sizable stake in Coursera (NYSE:COUR) could prompt some folks to open a bullish position of their own in COUR stock. Not long ago, I strongly recommended buying Coursera as its share price had dropped to a buy zone. Unfortunately, Coursera’s shares have flat-lined since I made that bullish call. Still, that means that it’s still possible to start a new position or add to an existing one at a favorable price point.
Francisco Partners, Elliott Management Eye SonicWall Sale: Report (CRN)
Private equity firm Francisco Partners and activist hedge fund Elliott Management are preparing to sell platform security vendor SonicWall after nearly five years of ownership, PE Hub reported. The sale process is expected to launch later in June, and Francisco Partners and Elliott Management are being assisted by investment bank Morgan Stanley, which is providing financial advice on the sale process, according to PE Hub. SonicWall and Francisco Partners declined to comment, while neither Elliott Management nor Morgan Stanley immediately responded to CRN requests for comment.
Distressed Funds Target CMBS Debt in Revival of Crisis Playbook (Bloomberg)
As distressed real estate investors struggle to find enough properties to snatch up, at least two money managers think they’ve found an untapped source of troubled hotels, offices and retail space: commercial real estate bonds. Hedge fund Axonic Capital and startup Metamorphosis Hotel Capital Partners are picking apart commercial mortgage-backed securities as they hunt for bargains, according to people with knowledge of the funds’ strategies. The two have different plans for how to gain possession of the underlying assets, but their end goals are similar: to take control of, fix and flip ailing properties for significant profit.
Hedge Funds’ Biggest Names – from Dalio to Cohen to Englander – are Embracing Crypto. Here’s Where the Most Influential Managers Stand. (Business Insider)
Hedge funds like multi-strategy giants Millennium and Point72 are getting into crypto. The space, which was once dismissed by top managers, has become more accepted. There are still major holdouts, including Ken Griffin‘s Citadel. The hedge-fund world didn’t come running to cryptocurrencies. While some smaller funds embraced bitcoin and other digital currencies early on, the biggest names in the industry needed to warm up to the idea of investing in a completely new asset class.
From Inflation Denial to Inflation Panic (Hedge Nordic)
Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – Ahead of its shift in focus from precious metals to “green” metals, Atlant Precious turned in a solid performance in May. The precious metals-focused fund managed by Mattias Gromark advanced 10.7 percent last month to bring its 2021 performance into positive territory at 5.5 percent. “The market has shifted from inflation denial to inflation panic, or at least worries, so the fund had a strong run driven mainly by gold- and silver-related assets,” Gromark tells HedgeNordic. “Also, some of our new copper-related holdings had a good run,” he continues.
Activist Hedge Fund Engine No. 1 Wins Third Seat on Exxon Board (CNBC)
Hedge fund Engine No. 1 has gained a third seat on the Exxon Mobil board of directors. The upstart fund campaigned on environmental concerns and the idea that Exxon was not doing enough to address them. CEO Darren Woods issued a statement saying he looked forward to working with the new directors. CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” crew discuss.
“Dysfunctional Governance”: Activist Hedge Fund CIAM Attacks French Reinsurer SCOR’s Succession Plans (Hedge Week)
CIAM, the London- and Paris-based activist hedge fund, has launched a fierce attack on reinsurance firm SCOR SE’s corporate governance and management succession plans, and is calling for shareholders to vote against the re-election of chairman Denis Kessler and board directors and to oppose proposed remuneration policies at the company’s AGM later this month. The activist hedge fund, which wrote to SCOR last year to address “significant corporate governance deficiencies”, has welcomed the separation of the roles of chairman and CEO following the departure of Kessler as CEO.
Power Struggle in Australia: The Problem and the Opportunity (Preqin)
Despite an apparent lack of federal support, there is enormous opportunity for private capital investment in renewables in Australia, driven by the need to replace the continent’s aging coal fleet. Could there have been a more unfortunate representation of Australia’s climate ambitions than our Prime Minister wielding a lump of coal in parliament, beseeching the public to have no fear? Thankfully, that parliamentary pantomime doesn’t represent reality in the Australian energy market. Advancements in energy efficiency technology and engineering, supportive state-led policy frameworks, and sound project economics are driving the shift away from fossil fuels.
Ex-Hedge Fund Exec Who Resigned Amid Jeffrey Epstein Scandal Dubbed a ‘Predator’ in Lawsuit (LawAndCrime.com)
The former head of a multibillion-dollar hedge fund who resigned earlier this year amid scrutiny of his financial ties to Jeffrey Epstein has been hit with a lurid lawsuit accusing him of raping, intimidating and paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to silence a woman over the course of a decade. Former Apollo Global Management CEO Leon Black has been sued in New York County Supreme Court by Guzel Ganieva, who alleged earlier this year in a series of tweets that the hedge fund honcho “sexually harassed and abused” her for years.
Kodak’s CEO Engaged in Insider Trading When He Purchased Stock in the Company While Negotiating with the White House for a $655 million Loan, NY AG Says (Business Insider)
New York Attorney General Letitia James said Kodak CEO Jim Continenza engaged in insider trading last summer when he purchased 46,737 shares of the company. The CEO made the purchase while he was leading secret discussions with the White House for a loan, James said. Public news of the loan sent the stock soaring. Kodak said Continenza was not in possession of material non-public information, and he has never sold a share.
Thursday 6/3 Insider Buying Report: FIGS, DNB (Nasdaq)
At Figs, a filing with the SEC revealed that on Tuesday, Director Christopher Peter Varelas bought 45,455 shares of FIGS, at a cost of $22.00 each, for a total investment of $1.00M. So far Varelas is in the green, up about 43.9% on their buy based on today’s trading high of $31.65. Figs is trading off about 1.4% on the day Thursday. And at Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, there was insider buying on Wednesday, by Chief Executive Officer Anthony M. Jabbour who bought 47,700 shares for a cost of $20.96 each, for a total investment of $999,620. Before this latest buy, Jabbour purchased DNB at 3 other times during the past year, for a total cost of $6.4M at an average of $22.78 per share. Dun & Bradstreet Holdings is trading up about 2.9% on the day Thursday. So far Jabbour is in the green, up about 4.2% on their purchase based on today’s trading high of $21.83.
The SVP & Pres, Neuromodulation of Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) is Selling Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Today, the SVP & Pres, Neuromodulation of Boston Scientific (BSX), Maulik Nanavaty, sold shares of BSX for $3.33M. In addition to Maulik Nanavaty, 2 other BSX executives reported Sell trades in the last month. Based on Boston Scientific’s latest earnings report for the quarter ending March 31, the company posted quarterly revenue of $2.75 billion and quarterly net profit of $341 million.
Bluelinx Holdings Inc (BXC) PRESIDENT AND CEO Mitchell B Lewis Sold $2.9 million of Shares (Guru Focus)
PRESIDENT AND CEO of Bluelinx Holdings Inc, Mitchell B Lewis, sold 56,622 shares of BXC on 05/28/2021 at an average price of $51.18 a share. The total sale was $2.9 million.
