Ray Dalio Hedging Bets to Counter the Unknown of Coronavirus (Bloomberg)
Ray Dalio says he doesn’t know much when it comes to pandemics. So when considering the market impact of the coronavirus outbreak, the billionaire founder of hedge fund Bridgewater Associates plans to play safe and hedge his bets. “When you don’t know, the best investment strategy is to be smartly diversified across geographic locations, across asset classes, and across currencies,” he wrote in a daily note to clients on Jan. 28.
US Firm Coatue in Talks to Lead Up to $100m Funding in India’s BharatPe (DealStreetAsia.com)
New York-based hedge fund Coatue Management, an investor in tech giants such as Facebook, Alibaba, and Tencent, is in talks to lead $75-100 million funding in Indian digital payments aggregator BharatPe. Existing investors such as US-based fintech fund Ribbit Capital, Insight Partners and hedge fund Steadview Capital are expected to join the latest round, which is likely to value BharatPe at $500 million, The Economic Times reported quoting sources.
Investors Are Cheering Warren Buffett’s Newspaper Sale; That’s Bad News For The Papers (Forbes)
There is rarely good news in print media. Berkshire Hathaway, the investment conglomerate helmed by Warren Buffett, announced on Wednesday that it will offload its 31 newspapers to Lee Enterprises, including The Buffalo News and the Omaha World-Herald. The value investor praised the Davenport, Iowa-based business, which has been managing his newspaper assets since 2018, as the best place for them to go. “We believe that Lee is best positioned to manage through the industry’s challenges,” Buffett said in a statement.
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AQR Cuts Returns Outlook Now That Everything’s More Expensive (Bloomberg)
The quants at AQR Capital Management are here again to warn investors of “soberingly low” returns. A year after their last missive, they’re even more sober. The $186 billion quantitative hedge fund this week updated its medium-term outlook for the major asset classes. The predictions are for lower annualized returns across the board compared with their projections a year earlier…
Famed Investor Michael Novogratz Said Psychedelics will be the Next ‘Short-term Bubble’ After Cannabis – and Predicts Compass Pathways will Go Public this Year (Business Insider)
Famed investor Michael Novogratz made a big bet on psychedelics – one he expects will pay off soon. “I’m positive this will be the next short-term bubble because it’s such a positive story,” the former Goldman Sachs partner, hedge fund manager, and cryptocurrency evangelist said at the Context Summits conference in the Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami’s South Beach. To that end, Novogratz has backed UK-based Compass Pathways, a biotech working on bringing drugs derived from psilocybin – the active ingredient in magic mushrooms – to market.
Robust Systems Needed to Underpin Hedge Fund Businesses (Hedge Week)
When considering hedge funds to invest in, asset allocators place a high value on controls around cyber security, information security and compliance. Therefore, startup hedge funds need to ensure they not only deliver on their investment promises but also that the technology systems underpinning their business are robust. James Baxter, head of institutional sales efforts at SS&C Eze, elaborates: “Startup hedge funds need to make themselves attractive to the asset allocators. Cyber security, information security and compliance are the top three items allocators are evaluating when considering investment with a specific manager, so it’s critical that managers choose vendors that help them, not hurt them, in these areas.”
A Yin-Yang Approach to Credit Investing (Hedge Nordic)
Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – Nordic Cross Credit Edge was among the best-performing fixed-income hedge funds in the Nordics last year after gaining 8.2 percent. The fund managed by a trio consisting of Emil Nordström (pictured), Magnus Nilsson and Fredrik Tauson was last year’s best performing non-Danish fixed-income hedge fund in the Nordics. Launched during the summer of 2018, Nordic Cross Credit Edge seeks to generate alpha by opportunistically buying high-quality corporate bonds trading far below par during a liquidity squeeze caused by worrying investors.
A Top Hedge Fund CIO Weighs in on the Best Global Investment Opportunities (CNBC)
Ryan Tolkin, CIO at Schonfeld Strategic Advisors, joins “Squawk Box” to discuss where he thinks investors should be looking for returns in the markets.
Thursday 1/30 Insider Buying Report: FCX, ISTR (Nasdaq.com)
As the saying goes, there are many possible reasons for an insider to sell a stock, but only one reason to buy — they expect to make money. So let’s look at two noteworthy recent insider buys. On Tuesday, Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold (FCX)’s, John Joseph Stephens, made a $503,550 purchase of FCX, buying 45,000 shares at a cost of $11.19 each. Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold is trading down about 0.6% on the day Thursday.
Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp (ADPT) CEO and Chairman Chad M Robins Sold $1 million of Shares (Guru Focus)
CEO and Chairman of Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp., Chad M Robins, sold 33,360 shares of ADPT on 01/29/2020 at an average price of $30.71 a share. The total sale was $1 million. Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp has a market cap of $3.87 billion; its shares were traded at around $30.94 with and P/S ratio of 14.33. GuruFocus has detected 1 severe warning sign with Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp.
It’s Time to Reform US Regulation on Insider Buying and Selling (NewsLagoon.com)
As Gordon Gekko mentioned: “Probably the most worthwhile commodity I do know of is info.” Insider merchants knew this lengthy earlier than the anti-hero of the movie Wall Road put it so memorably – one snippet of knowledge gained earlier than anybody else provides you that further edge and places the market at your mercy. Regulators have tried in varied methods to clamp down on against the law that’s notoriously troublesome to show. Profitable prosecutions are by no means easy; direct proof will not be simple to acquire and convictions usually depend on testimony from co-operating witnesses.
The SVP & GC of Saul Centers (NYSE: BFS) is Selling Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Yesterday, the SVP & GC of Saul Centers (BFS), Debra Noreen Stencel, sold shares of BFS for $604.9K. The company has a one-year high of $58.49 and a one-year low of $48.39. Currently, Saul Centers has an average volume of 72.48K. BFS’s market cap is $1.3B and the company has a P/E ratio of 30.41.
Verisk Analytics Inc (VRSK) EVP, Gen Counsel and Corp Sec Kenneth E Thompson Sold $3.6 million of Shares (Guru Focus)
EVP, Gen Counsel and Corp Sec of Verisk Analytics Inc., Kenneth E Thompson, sold 21,723 shares of VRSK on 01/29/2020 at an average price of $165.15 a share. The total sale was $3.6 million. Verisk Analytics Inc is a data analytics provider serving customers in insurance, natural resources and financial services.
A Director at Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ: HTBK) is Buying Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Yesterday, a Director at Heritage Commerce (HTBK), Steven Hallgrimson, bought shares of HTBK for $94.32K. This recent transaction increases Steven Hallgrimson’s holding in the company by 6.53% to a total of $1.5 million. In addition to Steven Hallgrimson, one other HTBK executive reported Buy trades in the last month.
