3G, BTG Veterans Take Surf Survival Tips to Rio-Based Hedge Fund (Bloomberg)
One of the newest hedge funds in Rio de Janeiro is run by a trio of die-hard surfers who know how to bounce back after a wipeout. Aptly named Mar Asset Management (mar means sea in Portuguese), the firm was founded by veterans of Banco BTG Pactual SA and 3G Capital and is now outperforming the sector, even after its single hedge fund product tumbled 26% in March. The Mar Absoluto FIC FIM fund erased those losses and is up 4.74% year to date, while the nation’s 185 biggest hedge funds are down 0.6% on average, according to data provided by Bloomberg.
The World’s Largest Hedge Fund Saw Assets Decline 15% Amid the Coronavirus Market Sell-off (Business Insider)
Even the world’s largest hedge fund couldn’t avoid the swift and steep decline in the stock market amid the coronavirus pandemic in March and April. Bridgewater Associates, founded by Ray Dalio, saw its assets decline by 15% during the market sell-off, according to a filing made by the company and first reported by Bloomberg. Assets at the firm fell to $138 billion at the end of April from $163 billion at the end of February, but according to a Bloomberg source, that drop was primarily driven by a decline in its funds rather than clients pulling money out of the firm’s hedge fund strategies.
Anniversary with a Bang (Hedge Nordic)
Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – Around mid-May in 2018, Stockholm-based asset manager Alcur Fonder launched a long-biased small-cap-focused long/short equity fund called Alcur Select. Fast forward two years, Alcur Select ranks as the best-performing hedge fund in the Nordics during the two years since its inception. Managed by Wilhelm Gruvberg out of Stockholm, Alcur Select was last year’s best-performing Nordic hedge fund with a gain of 51 percent and currently ranks among this year’s ten best performers with a year-to-date return of about 14 percent.
Alex Oakenman / shutterstock.com
Starboard’s Feld Quits AECOM’s Board Over CEO Pick (Reuters)
(Reuters) – Hedge fund Starboard Value LP managing member Peter Feld stepped down from AECOM’s (ACM.N) board in protest over the selection of a new chief executive that sidestepped a search process overseen by him, the U.S. engineering company disclosed on Monday. Feld quit after the board held a meeting without a previously disclosed agenda to vote on the promotion of Chief Financial Officer Troy Rudd to CEO, according to Feld’s June 12 resignation letter that the company published on Monday.
Hedge Fund Performance Up +1%, L/S Credit and Global Macro Strategies Outperform (Opalesque.com)
Hedge fund performance was up +1% so far in June, according to Lyxor Peer Groups. The period under review (up to June 9th) excludes the most recent trading days which saw renewed market volatility. The report said that L/S Credit and Global Macro strategies outperformed so far in June, on the back of the rebound of EM assets and the tightening of high yield credit spreads. Meanwhile, CTA strategies continued to underperform due to the rebound in risk assets (including energy) and the rise in bond yields. “Our stance remains constructive on Event-Driven and Fixed Income Arbitrage strategies, Neutral on CTA and Global Macro, and defensive on L/S Equity, particularly Market Neutral L/S strategies,” Lyxor said.
Billionaire-Run Hedge Fund Schonfeld Fired an Executive Assistant Who Added ‘Black Lives Matter’ to Her Email Signature, Saying She Didn’t Get it Approved Properly First (Business Insider)
On June 1, multi-billion-dollar hedge fund Schonfeld Strategic Advisors‘ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Alliance sent out an email with the subject line “#BlackLivesMatter” that read “it is more important than ever to spread tolerance, acceptance, equality and love.” “We have the ability to change the world with our voices and our actions. Staying silent does not invoke change,” the email continued. A week later, an executive assistant to Schonfeld Strategic Advisors general counsel Mark Peckman was fired after she changed her work email signature to include the phrase “Black Lives Matter.”
Hedge Fund Industry Split Over Return to Work and Client Meetings, as Lockdown Measures Ease (Hedge Week)
Most hedge fund industry employees have been working remotely during the coronavirus pandemic, but now firms are split over when staff should return to work and when businesses can resume face-to-face contact with investors and other clients, a new study by the Alternative Investment Management Association has found. The survey data suggests firms with smaller headcounts are more confident on resuming client contact and overseas travel later this year. But firms with larger staff numbers do not expect to return to normal until 2021, suggesting they face bigger practical challenges in ensuring social distancing among employees.
Chancellor Hands Bank of England Job to Former Hedge Fund Manager (Financial News)
The Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced that former hedge fund manager Jonathan Hall has been appointed to the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee. Hall previously worked as a portfolio manager at hedge fund Eisler Capital. Members of the committee monitor and address systemic risks to the stability of the UK’s financial system.
Hedge Fund Performance Update: May 2020 (Preqin.com)
The Preqin All-Strategies Hedge Fund benchmark returned +2.89% in May as global markets began to regroup, reducing 2020 YTD losses to 2.95% and bringing the 12-month return to +1.80%. North America-focused hedge funds posted the highest May return (+4.36%) of any top-level region. In contrast, funds focused on Europe returned +1.34%. This factsheet presents the hedge fund performance benchmarks for May 2020. Plus, the year to date and 12-month return figures for all top-level strategies, structures, denominations, and size classifications.
Hedge Fund That Went Long the VIX in January Is Up 39% This Year (Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg) — All it took for Formidable Asset Management LLC to beat the market in the first half was to get the effect of the coronavirus right. As a result, Formidable’s fund climbed 38.8% this year, gross of fees, beating most peers and significantly outperforming the broader market. The Formidable fund, which correctly bet on what Covid-19 would bring, went long on VIX options in mid-January, reduced some equity exposure and bought put options on Nasdaq derivatives in early February, according to a letter seen by Bloomberg. The VIX, which measures expected levels of volatility on the S&P 500 Index, spiked above 82 in mid-March from less than 14 a month prior.
Salesforce.com Inc (CRM) Chair of the Board & CEO Marc Benioff Sold $4.4 million of Shares (Guru Focus)
Chair of the Board & CEO of Salesforce.com Inc., Marc Benioff, sold 25,000 shares of CRM on 06/15/2020 at an average price of $175.59 a share. The total sale was $4.4 million. Salesforce.com Inc is a software-as-a-service company that provides enterprise cloud computing solutions, offering social and mobile cloud apps and platform services, as well as professional services to facilitate the adoption of its solutions.
Tuesday 6/16 Insider Buying Report: WD, MRLN (Nasdaq.com)
At Walker & Dunlop, a filing with the SEC revealed that on Thursday, Director Michael D. Malone bought 10,000 shares of WD, for a cost of $47.82 each, for a total investment of $478,170. So far Malone is in the green, up about 10.9% on their purchase based on today’s trading high of $53.03. Walker & Dunlop is trading up about 5.5% on the day Tuesday. This buy marks the first one filed by Malone in the past twelve months. And also on Thursday, Director Lawrence J. Deangelo purchased $439,945 worth of Marlin Business Services, purchasing 52,595 shares at a cost of $8.36 each. This purchase marks the first one filed by Deangelo in the past year. Marlin Business Services is trading up about 11% on the day Tuesday. Deangelo was up about 7.0% on the purchase at the high point of today’s trading session, with MRLN trading as high as $8.95 at last check today.
A Director at Puma Biotechnology (NASDAQ: PBYI) is Selling Shares (Analyst Ratings)
Today, a Director at Puma Biotechnology (PBYI), Troy Edward Wilson, sold shares of PBYI for $251.7K. In addition to Troy Edward Wilson, 3 other PBYI executives reported Sell trades in the last month. The company has a one-year high of $15.00 and a one-year low of $5.50. Currently, Puma Biotechnology has an average volume of 995.90K.
UAE Bans Insider Trading in Capital Markets from Today (Khaleej Times)
The insider trading at public shareholding companies listed in the UAE capital markets takes effect on June 16 (Tuesday), in compliance with the applicable regulations and rules issued by the Securities and Commodities Authority. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Dubai Financial Market have called on listed shareholding companies and brokerage companies to implement the ban until the announcement of the financial statements for the second quarter of 2020.
