Editor’s Note: General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP), Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (USA) (NYSE:BAM), Hampden Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBNK)
Who Hedge Fund Managers Backed In The NYC Mayoral Primary (HedgeCo.net)
Prominent NYC hedge fund managers came up empty in the NYC Democratic mayoral primary, Absolute Return reported today. Dan Loeb (Third Point), Robert Ziff (Och-Ziff) and Peter McKown (Prince Street) were among those giving big to losing candidate Christine Quinn. George Soros was one of the few to back the Democratic winner Bill de Blasio, while David Tepper (Appaloosa), Carl Icahn and others correctly picked GOP winner Joe Lhota. Huffington Post reports: “The top vote-getter in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, was the most vocally anti-Bloomberg of the major candidates, railing against the mayor’s pro-police, pro-development, pro-business, pro-trickle-down politics. On the Republican side, Joe Lhota, a one-time deputy mayor to Rudolph Giuliani, handily won his party’s nomination after tying himself closely to many of Bloomberg’s policies.”
Paulson’s Advantage Funds beat peers with gains in August (Reuters)
Billionaire investor John Paulson‘s biggest funds are boasting double-digit returns for the year, and his Advantage Funds made money in August when many hedge funds were in the red. The Advantage Fund rose 1.9 percent in August and is now up 10 percent for the year, while the Advantage Plus Fund rose 2.8 percent and is up 14.4 percent, according to two people familiar with the numbers but who are not permitted to speak about them publicly. Both portfolios beat the average return of hedge funds, which slipped 0.73 percent in August, as well as the Standard & Poor’s Index, which fell 3.3 percent.
Ackman cuts stake in mall owner General Growth Properties (KFGO)
Bill Ackman‘s Pershing Square Capital Management cut its stake in mall owner General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP) to 3.7 percent from 8 percent, the hedge fund said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund was the second biggest shareholder in the company after Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (USA) (NYSE:BAM), which had reported a stake of about 39 percent as of August 8. Ackman has been a passive investor in General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP) after he failed to secure a buyer for the company.
Some SAC Capital investment staff jumping to rival firm (MSN Money)
Three investment professionals have quit Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors, currently fighting criminal insider trading charges, to join a rival hedge fund, two people familiar with the moves said on Friday. Andres Anker, Alexey Chentsov and Santiago Falconi left Cohen’s $14 billion firm to join Israel Englander’s $18 billion Millennium Management. Chentsov and Falconi worked as SAC analysts for 9 years and 7 years, respectively. Anker, a portfolio manager, quit SAC in March 2012. Millennium, like SAC, employs dozens of smaller portfolio teams to buy and sell thousands of securities quickly.
‘Youngest African-American Hedge Fund Founder’ Admits Stealing From Investors (Financial Advisor Magazine)
A 29-year-old investment advisor who described himself as the “youngest African-American hedge fund founder in history” pleaded guilty today to engaging in a wire fraud conspiracy to steal over $1 million from investors. Frederick Douglas Scott, CEO of ACI Capital Group in Manhattan, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy and lying to Securities and Exchange Commission officials who were conducting a regulatory examination of his firm. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York says Scott faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment on the fraud charge and five years’ imprisonment on the false statement charge.
Wise trio on big issues of the day (CNBC.com)
Bridgewater’s All Weather Fund still under weather through August: sources (Reuters)
A $70 billion portfolio managed by hedge fund titan Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates is still struggling to overcome heavy summer losses that could lead some investors to place redemption notices in the last quarter of the year, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. The Bridgewater All Weather Fund is down roughly 7 percent year-to-date through August, after losing 1.4 percent last month and 6.22 percent in June, according to the two people who had seen the numbers but were not authorized to speak publicly about the fund’s performance. The performance of the All Weather fund is being closely watched this year because many state and corporate pensions invest in the portfolio.
Proskauer Adds Mayer Brown Private Fund Partner In Beijing (Law360)
A veteran private equity and hedge fund attorney who advises funds and their sponsors has joined Proskauer Rose LLP from Mayer Brown LLP and will work as a private fund partner in Beijing, Proskauer announced Friday. Yong Ren joined the firm on Thursday, a Proskauer spokeswoman said. He had worked as a partner at Mayer Brown since 2010 and was previously based in New York.
Franklin Templeton Fund of Hedge Funds Comes to Korea Next Year (BusinessKorea)
As domestic institutional investors start to add alternative investments to their portfolio of stocks and bonds, the market for funds of hedge funds is growing, and Franklin Templeton has started to make a move. “K2 Advisor, which has US$8.7 billion [9.4 trillion won] of fund capital, is preparing to launch a hedge fund next year,” said Franklin Templeton personnel on September 12. According to Institutional Investor data, it is ranked 19th in the global market of funds of hedge funds. K2 Advisor is mainly targeting Korean institutional investors.
Hampden Bancorp: Throw away ballot from Texas hedge fund (Boston Business Journal)
In a regulatory filing today, the board of Hampden Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBNK), parent of the Springfield-based bank, urges shareholders to vote for its four candidates for board seats, and against two candidates nominated by Texas hedge fund Clover Partners. Clover is Hampden’s largest shareholder, and says the bank has underperformed while overpaying its top executives. Clover’s managing partner Johnny Guerry has nominated himself and Texas banker Garold Base to the board. Previously, Guerry publicly urged the bank’s board to consider selling the bank.
A Hedge Funder Is Selling The Apartment He Just Renovated For $25 Million (Business Insider)
Hedge fund mogul John Read Taylor turned heads in 2010 when he paid $4.5 million above ask for a swanky Upper East Side co-op — a purchase that appears to have been funded with a $20 million loan from his firm. Now, after gut renovating the apartment and living in it for a mere six months, the financier is putting the pad on the market for $25 million. Top Manhattan broker Roger Erickson of Sotheby’s International Realty listed the co-op at 2 East 88th Street last week for a whopping $6,203 per square foot, StreetEasy shows. Taylor, the chairman of Manhattan-based hedge fund FX Concepts, purchased the 4,030-square-foot apartment in June 2010 for $22 million — a fair shot more than the unit’s then $17.5 million asking price.
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