Activist Investor Barry Rosenstein to Join Walgreen Board (NYTimes)
The activist investor Barry Rosenstein will join the board of Walgreen, the drugstore chain announced on Monday. Mr. Rosenstein, founder of the $11 billion hedge fund Jana Partners, will also recommend an additional director to the board, the company said. He joins as Walgreen Company (NYSE:WAG) completes an acquisition of the British pharmacy chain Alliance Boots. “We are very pleased to welcome Barry to the board,” said Gregory D. Wasson, Walgreen’s president and chief executive. Mr. Rosenstein’s expertise will “add tremendous value to our board and help drive value for shareholders,” he said.
Hertz CEO Exits Amid Activist Investor Pressure (Investors)
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ) Chairman and CEO Mark Frissora is stepping down from those posts effective immediately as the company recovers from a series of accounting problems. Hertz Equipment Rental head Brian MacDonald was named interim CEO, and board director Linda Fayne Levinson will serve as chairman while the car and equipment rental company searches for a permanent successor to Frissora. Hertz had been under pressure to make changes from activist investors Carl Icahn and hedge fund Fir Tree Partners.
Hedge-Fund Mogul’s Divorce Spells End for Chicago Foundation (Philanthropy)
A Chicago philanthropy that has pledged more than $100-million in the 15 years since its launch is a likely casualty of the split between its founding couple, hedge-fund billionaire Kenneth Griffin and his wife, Anne Dias Griffin, reports the Chicago Tribune. Sources told the newspaper that the Kenneth & Anne Griffin Foundation’s work will be folded into Mr. Griffin’s personal giving and that of his company, Citadel.
Steve Cohen Money Manager Exits After McLaren Reckless-Driving Arrest (BusinessWeek)
Paul Orwicz, a money manager at billionaire Steven A. Cohen’s investment firm, departed Point72 Asset Management LP a week after he was arrested for reckless driving in his McLaren supercar in Connecticut. Paul Orwicz, 46, said in a telephone interview that he resigned last week after his two-year contract with the firm, which manages Cohen’s fortune, expired. Orwicz said he’s pursuing other opportunities within the hedge-fund industry. He said the driving incident was an “unfortunate coincidence” with his exit from Point72, and that he hoped to resolve the matter with the authorities.
DB Study Says Investors Poised To Pour $50B Into Liquid Alts (Finalternatives)
Investors continue to thirst after hedge fund liquid alternatives, according to a new survey from Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB). The study, From Alternatives to Mainstream (Part Two), surveyed 212 investor entities worldwide managing more than $804 billion in hedge fund assets and 86 global hedge fund managers representing $6 trillion in firm wide assets. Over half (51%) of the participants said they were allocating to liquid alternatives products, up from 28% in 2013.
