Editor’s Note: Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS), HORSEHEAD HOLDING CORP. (NASDAQ:ZINC), Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK), J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP), The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX), Steinway Musical Instruments Inc (NYSE:LVB)
Bill Ackman resigned from J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP)’s board after a public fight with his fellow directors, capping more than two years of agitating to remake the retailer that left him with a potential $700 million in losses on his stake in the department-store chain. Ronald Tysoe, a former vice chairman of Federated Department Stores Inc., now Macy’s Inc., was named to the board and another director will be added in the “near future,” the Plano, Texas-based company said in a statement today.
Hedge Fund Manager Mohnish Pabrai Buys Horsehead Holding, Chesapeake Energy (Forbes)
Hedge fund manager Mohnish Pabrai just reported his second quarter holdings. He did not buy into new positions except adding to HORSEHEAD HOLDING CORP. (NASDAQ:ZINC), Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) during the 3-months ended 06/30/2013, according to the most recent filings of his investment company. Mohnish Pabrai runs a very concentrated portfolio. As of 06/30/2013, he owns 6 stocks with a total value of $421 million.
Paulson Bids For Steinway (FINalternatives)
Hedge fund Paulson & Co. has taken the lead in the bidding to acquire legendary piano-maker Steinway Musical Instruments Inc (NYSE:LVB). Steinway said yesterday that an unidentified bidder had offered $38 per share for the company, 8.5% more than the $35 per share put up by private-equity firm Kohlberg & Co. Published reports indicate the higher bid came from Paulson.
Former Goldman Sachs Managing Directors Plan Asia Hedge Fund (Bloomberg)
Three former managing directors of Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)’s Japan business plan to start an Asia multi-strategy hedge fund early next year, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. Koji Gotoda and Takayuki Kasama have incorporated Golvis Investment Pte in Singapore, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. The fund will invest in all asset classes with an initial focus on Japan, they added. Japan-focused hedge funds have historically traded stocks, making a company staffed by a large team of former Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) employees and capable of investing in multiple asset classes a rarity, one of the people said.
Blackstone and Fidelity offer hedge fund taste to retail crowd (Reuters)
The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX), one of the world’s biggest hedge fund investors, said on Monday Fidelity Investments is a strategic partner in giving retail investors a taste of the normally exclusive world of hedge fund investing. Boston-based Fidelity’s Portfolio Advisory Service PAS.L, a managed account offering, has begun investing in the Blackstone Alternative Multi-Manager Fund (BXMMX.O). PAS clients are Fidelity retail investors with a minimum account of $50,000, who get access to some of the best outside money managers hired by Fidelity’s Strategic Advisers unit.
Fraud victim hedge fund gets $33 million in art (Newsday)
Eighteen contemporary artworks valued at $33 million have been transferred to a hedge fund victimized in a massive $400 million fraud scheme, the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office said Monday. The works by such boldface artists as Andy Warhol, Mark Rothko and Damien Hirst had belonged to Marc Dreier, a once-prominent Manhattan lawyer whom prosecutors called “the Houdini of impersonation and false documents.” Dreier is serving 20 years in the federal prison in Sandstone, Minn., after pleading guilty to money laundering and other charges in 2009. The scheme involved the sale of hundreds of millions of dollars in fake promissory notes to hedge funds.
SAC closes a trading unit (Westfair Online)
Steven A. Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors shut down Parameter Capital Management, one of its in-shop hedge funds, last week. One of the fund’s managers, Anil Stevens, is leaving SAC to start his own fund, Reuters reported, taking eight of nine people who worked in the unit with him. Stevens, according to the report, had been planning to start his own firm. Unnamed sources cited in multiple reports said the decision to close Parameter was planned before federal prosecutors last month charged SAC in a five-count indictment alleging a company culture that flouted trading rules.
Hermes seeding venture inks second hedge fund deal (Financial News)
Hermes BPK Partners, the $2.6 billion alternatives advisory boutique for the BT Pension Scheme, and US private equity firm Northern Lights Capital Group, have announced a second deal for their Accelerator Fund, which invests in early stage and emerging hedge funds. The Accelerator fund has invested in Altalis Capital Partners, a New York-based value-oriented long/short equity strategy, according to a statement from the two firms. The size of the deal was not disclosed but Altalis now has about $150 million in assets under management following the transaction, the statement said.
Hedge fund acquires 5% stake in Rangers (Herald Scotland)
Details released this afternoon by the London Stock Exchange showed that Laxey Partners now holds 3,250,000 shares and has 4.99% voting rights. It was known that around two million Rangers shares had changed hands on Monday, and today’s details were published because Laxey now has a stake above the 3% threshold which requires disclosure. The acquisition was made in the name of Credit Suisse Client Nominees UK. No further details were made public. It remains unclear who sold the shares, although former chairman Charles Green is prevented from transferring any of his stock until December.
