Hedge Fund Elliott Combats Hyundai, and South Korea’s Corporate Culture (TheStreet)
Badly burned by engines that set fire, and under fire from hedge-fund veteran Paul Singer, Hyundai Motor (HYMTF) finds itself under attack on all sides. The Hong Kong arm of Elliott Management on Monday laid out to the public its shareholder presentations pushing the car company and its car-components affiliate Hyundai Mobis to reform and restructure. Singer is pushing for the Hyundai group to unlock the stored cash on its books. Shares in the two companies and affiliate Kia Motors (KIMTF) fell on Monday after both Hyundai and Kia recalled yet more cars in North America. They called back another 534,000 vehicles due to risk of engine fires, bringing the total to more than 2.3 million vehicles recalled since 2015 for similar problems.
Tesla is ‘out of bullets’ and will plunge below $100 this year, former hedge-fund manager Whitney Tilson says (TSLA) (Business Insider)
Tesla has disappointed its investors and will tank more than 60% of its value by the end of this year, former hedge fund manager Whitney Tilson said on Monday. “Today I’m making one of my rare big calls: we will look back on last Friday as the beginning of the end for Tesla’s stock,” Tilson said in a newsletter distributed Monday seen by the research firm Quoth the Raven. He added that stock will be at “under $100” before the end of 2019.
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Carl Icahn’s Comeback: The Raider Rebounds After A Tough Stretch (Forbes)
Carl Icahn has been shaking up Wall Street for decades, but for the last few years the legendary trader looked a little lost in the markets. His investment fund lost money for three straight years, including back-to-back annual losses of 20% and 18% in 2016 and 2015. But at 83, Icahn seems to have regained his footing. He is not the only high-profile trader who has been humbled by the market in recent years, but unlike most hedge fund managers Icahn made money in 2018.
Column: Hedge Funds Carry on Buying Oil Despite Trump Intervention (Reuters)
LONDON (Reuters) – Hedge funds continued to boost their bullish position in crude and fuels last week despite a call from U.S. President Donald Trump for OPEC to “relax and take it easy”. Hedge funds and other money managers were net buyers of an extra 16 million barrels of Brent crude futures and options in the week to Feb. 26, according to ICE Futures Europe. Fund managers have been net buyers of 155 million barrels of Brent futures and options since Dec. 4, increasing their net long position in 11 out of the last 12 weeks (tmsnrt.rs/2EJUvB4).
Hedge Funds Disagree on the EM Rally, Says Lyxor (HedgeWeek)
Emerging markets (EM) L/S Equity strategies remain cautious regarding the sustainability of the rally in EM assets, according to the latest Weekly Brief from Lyxor’s Cross Asset Research team. Managers report that good news tend to be priced in with EM valuations back in their medium range. They are not convinced that global growth bottomed for good. They are also concerned that political uncertainties will continue to make stock picking opportunities vulnerable.
How Activists Buy Two Votes With One Share (The Wall Street Journal)
If you take big risks with other people’s money you should have your own fortune at risk too. At Barclays, the U.K. bank, New York-based Sherborne Investors is campaigning for a board seat and an overhaul of the business. But it has protected nearly two-thirds of its 5.5% stake with derivatives that limit its losses if Barclays’s stock tumbles, it emerged last week.
Can’t A Hedge Fund Buy $180M In Defaulted Venezuelan Debt In Private? (DealBreaker)
Suing a sovereign nation for failure to pay its debts can be fun. Just ask Paul Singer. And suing Venezuela for not paying its debts, at this precise moment, also seems especially promising: People can’t wait to offload their Venezuelan bonds for practically nothing, and there seems a decent chance that regime change is coming to Caracas that could prove as profitable as it did in Buenos Aires. Which is why lots and lots of hedge funds are buying up said bonds, and suing Venezuela and affiliated entities for repayment.
Carlson Capital is Bleeding Assets in Its Stock-picking Fund Following the Departure of One of Its Portfolio Managers (Business Insider)
Hedge fund Carlson Capital has been hit with client withdrawls from its long-short equity fund following the departure of one of the fund’s two portfolio managers. Carlson’s Black Diamond Thematic fund, which ended 2018 with $621 million in assets, has shed 60% of its assets since the start of the year after fund manager Matthew Barkoff resigned in January, sources tell Business Insider.
