Buffett to make $2 billion on crisis-era investment in Goldman Sachs (MarketWatch)
Once again Warren Buffett has shown us why he ranks among the best investors in history. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B) is about to receive $2 billion through Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) warrants bought in the darkest hours of the financial crisis. Goldman asked the Oracle of Omaha to invest $5 billion in 2008 to boost its capital and shore up confidence, after shares dropped following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, when the stock market went into free fall. The investment by Buffett came at a time when the federal government was scrambling to stabilize not only the financial system but the economy, including pumping money directly into the banking system.
Philip Falcone sells Harbinger shares to Leucadia (Opalesque)
Troubled hedge fund manager Philip Falcone sold 18.6 million shares of Harbinger Group worth $158m to Leucadia National Corp. (NYSE:LUK), to meet redemption requests from investors after reaching a settlement with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. According to a Bloomberg report, publicly traded holding firm Harbinger which is run by Falcone, sold the shares at $8.50 each. With the deal, Leucadia is now the second largest shareholder at Harbinger which offers life insurance and pet supplies. Bloomberg said Harbinger spokesman at RLM Finsbury Steven Goldberg refused to comment on the agreement. Laura Ulbrandt, a spokeswoman for Leucadia, did not immediately return a call, the report said.
Ad asks Obama to reject Keystone pipeline (UPI.com)
Billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer released a television ad asking U.S. President Barack Obama to keep the Keystone XL pipeline from being built. The ad, which was scheduled to first broadcast Sunday, is part of the Californian’s political action committee’s attempt to halt the pipeline, which would carry crude oil 1,700 miles from the oil sands in Alberta, Canada, to refineries in the Gulf Coast, The New York Times reported Sunday. Because the pipeline would cross the border from Canada to the United States, it needs approval from the U.S. State Department.
Hedge funds show strong confidence in European shares (Reuters)
Hedge funds’ negative bets on European shares have tumbled to a level not seen since before the global financial crisis began in 2007, signalling their strongest conviction for years that the market will rise further. It means long/short hedge funds, which bet on which stocks will rise or fall, have taken a strongly bullish tilt to take advantage of both a rising market and of the lower correlation among stocks brought about by continued monetary support by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
W.V. Adds $30 Million To Hedge Funds (FINalternatives)
West Virginia’s public-pension manager has increased its investment with four hedge funds. The West Virginia Investment Management Board gave $30 million to four existing managers. Carlson Capital‘s Double Black Diamond fund and Pine River Capital Management‘s eponymous fund each received $10 million more, bringing their total allocations from WVIMB to $70 million. Graham Capital Management and Winton Capital Management each got an extra $5 million, bringing their total allocations to $35 million.
Hedge fund pushes for G4S ‘break-up’ (Telegraph.co.uk)
G4S is facing pressure from one of its largest shareholders to spin off its core cash security business to revive its fortunes. Activist hedge fund Cevian Capital is understood to have demanded the security provider consider selling off its cash solutions unit, which is responsible for about a quarter of the company’s profits. Cevian Capital owns a 4.7pc stake in G4S, making it the company’s third largest shareholder, according to Bloomberg data. The cash solutions business is one of G4S’s core operations and employs about 6,000 secrurity guards to provide a secure cash collection service to high street retailers and banks.
Activist helping or hurting JCP? (CNBC.com)
GLG’s White drops hedge funds to work directly with Man Group’s Manny Roman (Risk.net)
GLG equities hedge fund manager John White has handed over his funds with immediate effect as he takes a more senior role at parent company Man Group, according to a report by Investment Week. White is now working with Man chief executive Emmanuel (Manny) Roman on strategic initiatives, having been part of the GLG UK equities business for the past decade. He joined GLG in 2004 from Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) where he ran the UK trading desk and then the European prop trading desks. GLG’s Nick Judge and Charlie Long have taken over White’s £330 million ($532.5 million) UK Select fund, and his $206 million ($332.4 million) Alpha Select hedge fund.
Golf fund-raiser supports educational programs (Greenwich Post)
Get into the swing of things on Oct. 3 when Jeffrey Arsenault of Old Greenwich Capital Partners, together with fellow organizers from Stepping Stones Museum, put on this year’s Swing Into It! Golf Tournament at the prestigious Stanwich Club. The event will support the museum’s Open Arms program. Mr. Arsenault, a seasoned hedge fund manager and the founder and principal partner of the New York-based multi-manager platform will be joined by other golf aficionados and guests as well as supporters of the event. This year’s event will be hosted by New York Mets pitching coach, Dan Warthen.
Neuberger Berman Launches US Emerging Markets Hedge Fund (HedgeCo.net)
One of the world’s leading employee-controlled money managers, Neuberger Berman Group LLC, has launched the Neuberger Berman Emerging Markets Income Fund for its US investors. “We believe the structural case for emerging markets debt (EMD) remains strong, as investors increasingly recognize the economic significance, improved credit quality, and depth of emerging markets economies and capital markets,” Rob Drijkoningen, co-head of Neuberger Berman’s EMD team. ”EMD should continue to benefit from the long-term trend of inflows, as investors in the U.S. and internationally look to include emerging markets to their fixed income exposure,” Gorky Urquieta, the other head of the team, said.
A Talk With Hedge-Fund Manager Daniel Khoshaba (Barron’s)
Not many hedge-fund managers trace their investing roots to a factory floor. But that’s how Daniel Khoshaba, one of the world’s best-performing long-short equity-fund managers, came to understand the industrial, consumer, and materials stocks in his $243 million absolute-return fund, KSA Capital Partners. “I learned from my customers,” says Khoshaba, who worked for his family’s specialized “made to blueprint” tool-making outfit in Schaumburg, Ill., until 1992. Among its clients were Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) and John Deere (DE). But he gave up precision manufacturing to get an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. Afterward, he went to work on Wall Street as an analyst covering the packaging industry, first for Salomon Brothers and then Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB), before launching KSA Capital Partners in 2004.
Clinton Group Calls for Nutrisystem to Increase Dividend (Wall Street Journal)
Hedge fund manager Clinton Group is pushing NutriSystem Inc. (NASDAQ:NTRI) board to increase its dividend, saying such use of the weight loss products company’s excess capital could improve value for shareholders and reduce its stock price volatility. Clinton Group disclosed it increased its ownership in the company to 5.2% and is now one of its top three stockholders. In a letter to Nutrisystem Chief Executive Dawn Zier, Clinton Group said it believes the company’s stock is undervalued at its current price and encouraged the company to increase its dividend as cash flow improves. Shares were up by 13 cents to $14.30 in light premarket trading. The stock is up 73% this year.
