Tom Steyer Likely to Miss September Debate Stage After Failing to Hit 2% in New Polls (CNN)
(CNN) Tom Steyer‘s strategy did not appear to pay off. The billionaire hedge-fund founder plowed millions of dollars into television and social media ads to promote his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, but he failed to register a minimum of 2 percentage points in two polls released Wednesday morning. Without those polls, he is likely to miss the debate stage in Houston next month. Steyer entered the race late — on July 9 — and scrambled to meet the Democratic National Committee’s polling and donor benchmarks. Candidates needed to register at least 2% in four DNC-approved polls and receive money from 130,000 individual contributors, including at least 400 donors in each of 20 or more states.
Hedge Funds Try to Break the Currency George Soros Couldn’t (Bloomberg)
Hedge Funds are ramping up their wagers against Hong Kong’s currency which fended off past moves by George Soros and Bill Ackman. Bloomberg’s Sonali Basak reports on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Americas.” (Source: Bloomberg)
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Mario Gabelli on Viacom-CBS and Other Positions (Guru Focus)
Mario Gabelli, head of GAMCO Investors and famous for the private market value metric, appeared on Bloomberg TV on Aug. 27. He spoke about a number of different topics and investment ideas. Here’s a summary: Geopolitical tension: Gabelli asked himself whether the tax rate is sustainable. What does global growth look like? What impact does this have on currencies and the U.S. dollar? Forty percent of S&P 500 earnings are coming from outside of the U.S.
Opinion: Before Following Ray Dalio into China, Ask Yourself These Questions (Market Watch)
If you want to follow billionaire Ray Dalio’s advice and take a gamble on China, you’d better be ready to hang on to your hat. Dalio, the founder of hedge fund behemoth Bridgewater Associates, has been a bull on China for a long time. He stepped into the current maelstrom to reiterate his case. “Would you have not wanted to invest with the Dutch in the Dutch empire?” he asked recently in an interview on YouTube GOOG, +0.25% GOOGL, +0.21%. “Would you have not wanted to invest in the industrial revolution and the British empire? Would you not want to invest in the United States and the United States empire?” China today, he said, is “comparable.”
David Einhorn’s General Motors Story Shows the Benefits of Buying With a Margin of Safety (Guru Focus)
David Einhorn‘s favorite stock for the past five years has been General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM). The value investor’s hedge fund, Greenlight Capital, has owned the stock since the first quarter of 2011 and, at one point, had as much as 32% of its portfolio invested in this one position. Steady buying: As noted above, Einhorn first acquired General Motors during the first quarter of 2011. He bought 3.4 million shares of the automaker at an average price of $31, devoting 2.2% of his portfolio to the company in the beginning.
Ex-Merrill Broker Bruce Lee Starts Hedge Fund with Koch Industries Backing (Advisor Hub)
Bruce Keebeck Lee, a top-ranked Merrill Lynch Private Wealth broker who founded a registered investment advisory firm after being forced out last year, has created an adjunct quantitative hedge fund with a big-name backer. Keebeck Alpha has raised $200 million since its launch earlier this month, with some seed money provided by Koch Industries, the controversial oil-services conglomerate that supports libertarian ventures and conservative causes. Several of the hedge fund’s nine investment professionals previously worked at Spring Creek Capital, a Wisconsin-based Koch affiliate that helps manage its cash reserves. Keebeck Alpha, which is located in Stamford, Connecticut, is led by chief investment officer Thong Nguyen, according to a press release.
Hedge Funds Got Schooled by China Education Stocks (Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg Opinion) — They were the best of stocks, they were the worst of stocks. They were investments of wisdom. They were investments of foolishness. If you’re a U.S. hedge fund manager, China’s education stocks have been a tale of two cities. A look at 180 U.S.-listed Chinese companies – from Alibaba Group Holding Inc. to BAT Group Inc. – shows that hedge funds have been gravitating toward this sector. Over the past six months, these companies were among the best and worst performers.
Vanda Hedge Fund Leaps by 278 percent (EnglishForums.com)
Vanda Global Fund Limited has emerged to be hedge fund of the year based on its outstanding performance. Expressly, as per July 2019, it had increased by two hundred and seventy-eight percent (278%). In 2016, Vanda Global Fund Ltd, a hedge fund, had decreased by at least fifty percent (50%) despite it being created with twenty-four million dollars ($24M). At this point, the founder Chong Chin Eai was considering closing shop after compensating the losses incurred by investors with personal savings. Nevertheless, he did not give in to fear as he decided to forge forward.
Most Successful SEC Whistleblower In History Says SEC Listens (Forbes)
Barron’s reports famed Madoff whistleblower Harry Markopolos is unhappy the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hasn’t paid him for his work. Markopolos recently published a report accusing GE of fraud and claims he has filed 9 other SEC whistleblower complaints yet has never received a financial award. Says Barron’s, “There are whistleblowers who have gotten paid- just not Markopolous.” Happily, my experience with the SEC differs starkly from Markopolos.
A Director at INTL FCStone Inc. (NASDAQ: INTL) is Buying Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Yesterday, a Director at INTL FCStone Inc. (INTL), Scott Branch, bought shares of INTL for $400.6K. Following Scott Branch’s last INTL Buy transaction on March 18, 2014, the stock climbed by 18.0%. In addition to Scott Branch, 2 other INTL executives reported Buy trades in the last month.
Wednesday 8/28 Insider Buying Report: DISH, W (Nasdaq.com)
On Friday, Dish Network’s Executive Vice President, James Defranco, made a $9.35M purchase of DISH, buying 300,000 shares at a cost of $31.18 a piece. So far Defranco is in the green, up about 5.8% on their purchase based on today’s trading high of $32.98. Dish Network is trading up about 1.6% on the day Wednesday. Before this latest buy, Defranco purchased DISH at 24 other times during the past twelve months, for a total cost of $9.96M at an average of $29.74 per share. And at Wayfair, there was insider buying on Friday, by Director Michael Andrew Kumin who bought 29,000 shares at a cost of $109.75 each, for a trade totaling $3.18M. Before this latest buy, Kumin bought W on 2 other occasions during the past twelve months, for a total cost of $2.07M at an average of $96.48 per share. Wayfair is trading up about 5.2% on the day Wednesday.
Insider Buying Vs. Insider Selling: What Numbers Really Matter For Traders? (Benzinga)
While many Americans associate the term “insider trading” with illegal activity, company insiders are free to buy and sell shares of their own company’s stock, provided they follow disclosure laws. Illicit insider trading occurs when a company insider trades after gaining meaningful non-public information about the company, or if an insider buys or sells shares of stock without disclosing the trades via Securities and Exchange Commission filings. A Ramp In Insider Selling: Company insiders whose compensation includes shares of stock can’t be faulted for selling those shares and raising cash periodically. However, traders watch closely for changes in patterns or unusual insider trading activity.
An Admission of Insider Trading has Cost a Former Company Director 75-thousand Dollars (NZCity.com)
Eoin Johnson must pay the money to the Financial Markets Authority in lieu of a penalty. The FMA says that payment, and Johnson’s admission, mean there’s no need for a court case. Johnson is a former director and chairman of NZX-listed dietary supplement company Promisia Integrative Limited. Johnson bought more than 2.5 million shares in the company soon after resigning in 2016. The FMA says he possessed sensitive sales information that had not been disclosed to the market – and the shares rose significantly in value.
An Insider at CVD Equipment (NASDAQ: CVV) is Selling Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Today, an Insider at CVD Equipment (CVV), William Linss, sold shares of CVV for $8,750. The company has a one-year high of $6.71 and a one-year low of $3.29. Currently, CVD Equipment has an average volume of 10.01K.
Jagan to Expose Insider Trading in Amaravati! (GreatAndhra.com)
The YSR Congress party government headed by chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has started exposing the “internal trading” allegedly done by the Telugu Desam Party leaders in and around Amaravati, before it was declared as the capital city by N Chandrababu Naidu government in September 2014. The Anti-Corruption Bureau authorities, following instructions from the Jagan government, seized several documents from Mangalagiri sub-registrar office pertaining to land transactions done just before the announcement of capital city at Amaravati.
