Buffett’s Ex-Hedge Fund Managers Outperform Oracle (FINalternatives)
Warren Buffett is proving to have as keen an eye for talent as he has for investment opportunity. In fact, if last year’s any indication, he’s an even better talent scout than he is an investor. Two former hedge fund managers hired by the Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B) chief a few years ago to eventually succeed him outdid the Oracle of Omaha in 2013. Indeed, both Todd Combs and Ted Weschler managed to beat the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index’s more than 30% return for the year, a feat that eluded the overwhelming majority of their former hedge-fund manager peers.
Billionaire Carl Icahn’s Investment Fund Returned 31% In 2013 (Forbes)
By just about any measure, billionaire investor Carl Icahn had a great year in 2013. The stock of Icahn Enterprises returned 158% last year as investors embraced Icahn’s publicly-traded investment vehicle, which not so long ago traded at a discount to its net asset value. With activist investing all the rage, the resurgence of Icahn in 2013 stretched from CNBC to the covers of Forbes and Time magazines, which called Icahn America’s most important investor. But behind all his proxy fights, television outbursts and tweets, is Icahn’s ability to trade financial markets. Now in his late 70s, Icahn is on an amazing run. In 2013, Icahn’s investment fund returned 31%, according to a recent financial presentation put out by Icahn Enterprises.
Tudor sees first global monetary policy divergence since 2010 (Ct Post )
Tudor Investment, the $13.7 billion macro hedge-fund firm run by Paul Tudor Jones, said global central bank policies will diverge this year for the first time since 2010. Tudor anticipates the U.S. and U.K. will raise interest rates earlier than expected, while rates will be cut in the euro area this year, according to a Jan. 15 weekly note to investors written by five members of the firm’s research team. “We believe that 2014 will be a year of contrasts when it comes to the outlook for monetary policy across the major developed markets,” Filippo Altissimo, global head of research at Tudor, and four colleagues wrote in the note. “For the first time since 2010, there will likely be an unfolding divergence in monetary policy.”
South African hedge fund managers see great opportunity in African consumer theme (Opalesque)
James Faircliff and Richard Böttger, two young South African hedge fund managers, are passionate about the stock market and about investing: you’d have to be if you started trading stocks at the age of 13 – which they did. As grown-ups, they began their professional career in private equity, and then moved into the listed space. Together they eventually formed Tower Capital in 2009. Tower Capital a Johannesburg-based firm; it runs a long/short equity hedge fund that is mainly focused on the South African stock market. After 52 months of trading, the annualized track record stands at 22% (net) with a standard deviation of 7%.
This Website Has Members Like Dan Loeb And Kyle Bass Posting Their Newest Stock Picks (Yahoo!7 News)
When Texan hedge fund manager Kyle Bass first revealed that Hayman Capital had taken a large long position in General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) he did it on new website HVST.com (Harvest Exchange). Earlier today, activist investor Daniel Loeb, who runs Third Point, also posted on Harvest Exchange that his fund’s largest long position is now The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE:DOW). Both of those stocks moved after they published their ideas on HVST.com. HVST.com is a site where hedge fund managers and investors can post investment ideas and share their views. Users don’t have to post content, though. They are welcome to lurk, read, and consume the content. The website launched just six weeks ago and it’s already starting to take off, according to the site’s CEO Peter Hans.
The Peltz effect (CNBC.com)
Acclaimed Hedge Fund Manager Takes Big Stake in RadioShack Corporation Stock (DailyFinance)
It seems the stock market and media may have been snoozing last Friday when Jamie Zimmerman‘s Litespeed Management LLC disclosed an 8.1% stake in RadioShack Corporation (NYSE:RSH). Shares were up slightly on Tuesday morning, but with no sign of Wall Street taking notice of the large position. For those unfamiliar with Zimmerman, she is a famed hedge fund manager known for her incredible market-beating performance in the early 2000s. Most sources quote her firm Litespeed LLC as managing around $1.0 billion in assets and specializing in special situations, distressed securities, and bankruptcy.
LSB fires back at hedge fund pushing company to make changes (NewsOK.com)
After coming under attack from a hedge fund which says it plans to launch a proxy fight, LSB Industries, Inc. (NYSE:LXU) is firing back against claims that the company lacks proper oversight and that its stock is undervalued because of mismanagement and other internal problems. Jack Golsen, LSB’s chairman and CEO, said in a letter to shareholders that the company’s board rejected most of New York-based hedge fund Engine Capital’s demands that the company spin off its climate control business and make governance reforms.
Darden should delay Red Lobster spinoff, hedge fund says (Orlando Sentinel)
Activist investor Starboard Value urged Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) on Tuesday to slow down its spinoff of Red Lobster until it fully considers other options. In the letter filed with the U.S. Securities Exchange & Commission, Starboard also criticized Darden for what it called a “bloated cost structure.” Starboard, a New York hedge fund, said Darden’s plan may not be in the best interest of shareholders. Darden said in a statement Tuesday it already conducted a full review of options – and received shareholders’ input – before deciding on its current path.
Hedge funds approach BoE minutes with bullish sterling bets (Reuters UK)
Hedge funds are approaching Wednesday’s Bank of England minutes betting the pound will extend its surge to a one-year high against the euro but wary the bank could signal interest rate rises may be pushed back. Many hedge funds were slow to catch on to the pound’s 12 percent rally from early July to the end of 2013. The gains came as the UK economy’s recovery increased the chances the Bank would be the first major central bank to raise interest rates. As the rally took hold, funds added to their bets, ending the year bullish.
Global Hedge-Fund Assets Climb 17% to a Record $2.63 Trillion (San Francisco Chronicle)
Hedge-fund assets increased by 17 percent last year, reaching a record $2.63 trillion, according to Hedge Fund Research Inc. Global assets rose by $376 billion, including $63.7 billion in net inflows from investors and $312 billion in investment gains, the Chicago-based data provider said in a report today. The fourth quarter was the sixth in a row that the industry saw a growth in assets, it said. Investors poured $29.6 billion into event-driven strategies, which include activist-oriented hedge funds such as Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC and Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management LP.
