Botox Maker Allergan Formally Rejects $47 Billion Take-Over Bid From Valeant And Bill Ackman (JewishBusinessNews)
Three weeks ago Quebec based pharmaceuticals company Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) made a US$47 billion hostile takeover bid, in cash and stock, to acquire Irvine California based specialty pharmaceuticals company, and maker of Botox, Allergan. Valeant was joined in the bid by hedge fund Pershing Square, which is led by activist investor Bill Ackman. Bill Ackman even managed to raise a few eyebrows when he separately disclosed he had quietly built up a substantial position of almost 10% himself, even with knowledge of the pending bid. His reasoning, which many accept, is that as a joint bidder with Valeant he was entitled to do just that.
Doug Kass on Tech Valuations: ‘Nuthin But a P/E Thang’ (WSJ)
So gangsta, he ain’t. But hedge-fund manger Doug Kass, or rather the self-proclaimed “Dougie Fresh,” is working on his rap game to reflect his bearish views of the market. In light of the recent selloff in tech stocks and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)‘s +1.01% rumored $3.2 billion deal for Beats Electronics LLC–the headphone maker co-founded by hip-hop producer and artist Dr. Dre–Mr. Kass of Seabreeze Partners Management reiterated his long-standing view that the market is overvalued and is due for a sizable pullback. But this time, he conveyed his views in a rather unorthodox manner.
No, Hedge Funds Aren’t Hijacking Peer To Peer Loans, Says Lending Club CEO (Forbes)
Are the pros pushing the peers out of peer to peer lending? These hot marketplaces that let people act like banks, lending extra cash to people who need it, have been growing in popularity over the last few years. Take Lending Club , the country’s largest peer to peer platform saw loans jump from $800 million in 2012 to $2 billion last year (it transacted $790 million in loans last quarter alone.) And grow it should. In the current low-rate environment, the company offers a win-win for borrowers and investors.
Questions over event driven activists adding value (Risk)
Event driven activist funds continue to be a favoured money-spinner for hedge fund investors. The strategy returned 16% last year and 3.3% in the first quarter of this year, among the highest of all returns, according to Hedge Fund Research indexes. Assets under the management of activist funds rose from $65 billion in 2012 to $95 billion in 2013, according to Hedge Fund Research. The year-on-year rise, $30 billion, is a significant upsurge: the number is equivalent to the amount of assets under activist funds’ management in 2008.
Lansdowne Partners promotes two managers (FT)
Lansdowne Partners is promoting its two leading investment managers to head the $18bn hedge fund in the final step of a succession plan from its founders to a younger generation of staff. Steven Heinz, who co-founded the Mayfair-based Lansdowne in 1998 and helped build it into one of the world’s largest equity hedge funds, is stepping back from his day to day responsibilities at the group, while Stuart Roden and Peter Davies, joint managers of its $13bn flagship Developed Markets fund, will now lead the company under a new UK LLP structure.
JPMorgan flagship fund stalls in tough climate (HereIsTheCity)
JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM)‘s asset management unit’s majority purchase of Highbridge Capital Management in 2004 long seemed like a win. The hedge fund firm assets grew from about $7 billion at the time of the sale to $37 billion in 2007. But Highbridge’s fast growth has slowed in recent years. Assets have declined since their pre-financial crisis peak to $24.5 billion as of Jan. 1; performance by its flagship hedge funds have been middling; and the firm has undergone notable personnel changes, not all of them planned.
World’s largest hedge funds (CNBC)
