Carl Icahn and Ackman’s Bourbon Man Named to Hall of Fame Together (WSJ)
Good thing Carl Icahn and Bill Ackman made up. Otherwise this would have made for an awkward ceremony. Mario Gabelli’s Gamco Management Hall of Fame (yes, such a hall exists) named to its 2014 class Mr. Icahn and Matthew Shattock, the CEO of bourbon maker Beam Suntory Inc (NYSE:BEAM) and a man who made a small fortune for Mr. Ackman. The “rigorous criteria” for the Hall include “creating shareholder wealth” and “earning a superior rate of return over the long term,” according to a release.
The Cheap Pimco Fund That Has Gross Reaching for His Wallet (Bloomberg)
Billionaire Bill Gross can’t resist this rarity: A slice of the corporate debt market that still looks cheap. Gross has been adding to his personal holdings this year in Pacific Investment Management Co.’s $1.5 billion Dynamic Income fund as demand picks up for an asset class that was left for dead in 2013, Bloomberg data show. The closed-end credit fund is now up 16.6 percent in 2014 as the discount between its share price and the assets the fund owns has disappeared. Most other such funds are still inexpensive by this measure because they haven’t yet generated enough demand to close the gap between their share prices and the value of the assets they own…
FSOC Warned Systemic Label For Asset Managers Could Hurt Investors (FA-Mag)
The Financial Systemic Oversight Council could end the advantages large asset managers offer — specialization and lower costs — if it designates them as systemically important, the chief executive officer of one of the nation’s largest hedge funds, Citadel Holding’s Ken Griffin cautioned Monday. Speaking at an FSOC roundtable on asset managers, Griffin warned these benefits would be lost because the non-bank Systemically Important Financial Institutions designation would probably lead institutional investors to pull assets out and bring the funds totally under their own control.
361 Capital To Launch Single-Manager Liquid Alts Funds (Finalternatives)
Denver-based fund of hedge funds 361 Capital is teaming with Janus Capital vet Blaine Rollins to launch the first in a series of single-manager liquid-alternative mutual funds. The 361 Global Macro Opportunity Fund—which should begin operations by July 1—will invest in a wide range of asset classes that provide exposure principally to U.S. and foreign equity securities, fixed income securities, commodities and currencies. The first launch will be followed by those of other ’40 Act vehicles sub-advised by hedge fund managers and managers of alternative mutual funds…
Letter: You can’t trust Scott Brown (ConcordMonitor)
Scott Brown’s lobbying efforts to kill the bipartisan Shaheen-Portman Energy bill in the U.S. Senate this week proves beyond any doubt that he has no idea what is important to New Hampshire families. The man is calculating and will play politics when it suits his interests, no matter the cost to the New Hampshire families and businesses. Just last week, while speaking at a hedge fund conference in Las Vegas, Brown criticized the dysfunction in Washington just days after lobbying to bring about more gridlock. This is one of many examples as to why Granite State voters cannot trust Brown.
Why Hedge Funds Love Charter Schools (HuffingtonPost)
Obscure laws can have a very big impact on social policy, including obscure changes in the United States federal tax code. The 2001 Consolidated Appropriations Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton, included provisions from the Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000. The law provided tax incentives for seven years to businesses that locate and hire residents in economically depressed urban and rural areas. The tax credits were reauthorized for 2008-2009, 2010-2011, and 2012-2013.
Billionaire hedge funder doubles down on climate fight (CNBC)
Hedge fund reinsurer Resource Re’s parent invests in Courant Capital (Artemis)
Till Capital Ltd., the parent company of hedge fund style reinsurance firm Resource Re, has increased its investment capabilities and options by purchasing 10% of alternative asset manager Courant Capital Management LLC. Till Capital, which we wrote most recently about here when it listed its shares on the TSX Venture Exchange, is the new name for the holding company to emerge from Americas Bullion Royalty Corp’s acquisition of Resource Holdings Ltd. That gave Till Capital ownership of Resource Re Ltd. which was the first hedge fund style reinsurance firm to join the Multi-Strat Re Ltd. platform in September 2013.
Hedge-Fund Middlemen are Getting Cheaper (WSJ)
It’s getting cheaper to get into hedge funds, by one avenue at least. Fund of funds, the middlemen who spread money across a variety of independent hedge funds, have dropped their fees to historic lows, according to a report from researcher Eurekahedge. The average annual management fee for FoFs starting up this year is 1.02%, down about one-quarter from 2009’s peak, the firm says. It adds that FoFs also take an annual performance fee amounting to 7% of any gains, compared with more than 10% in the pre-crisis years.
Brevan Shuts CMBS Fund Early (Finalternatives)
When Brevan Howard Asset Management launched a hedge fund designed to profit from the U.S. recovery, it gave itself two-and-a-half years to do it. As it happens, the firm didn’t even need that much time. Brevan Howard plans to liquidate the US$385 million after just two years. The Brevan Howard CMBS Fund, which debuted in 2012, has earned more than 20% investing in commercial mortgage-backed securities. The larger tranche made 21.57%, and the smaller 20%, the Financial Times reports. Taking the staggered returns of capital into account, the returns were an even more impressive 44.3% and 35.5%.
Arden wins Massachusetts pension fund’s hedge fund mandate (Reuters)
Arden Asset Management will help Massachusetts’ state pension fund invest in hedge funds by selecting managers, monitoring their performance and providing due diligence, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. New York-based Arden has won the $5.2 billion mandate to provide hedge fund advisory services for the $58 billion pension fund, which already invests with prominent funds like William Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management, Dan Och’s Och-Ziff Capital Management.
Jim Simons’ 5 Largest New Buys Topped By Apple (GuruFocus)
Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio) founded Renaissance Technologies, a hedge fund with about $15 in asset under management that executes many of its trades using mathematical and computer-based models that are often automated. It has a massive long portfolio containing 2,794 stocks, with a value of $41.7 billion. In the first quarter, the firm added 484 new stocks. Topping the list was a significant new stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), followed by Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Vodafone Group Plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:VOD), Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY).
Macro Play Goes Awry but Traders Keep the Faith (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
One of the most profitable trades for more than a year sharply reversed in 2014, creating havoc for many macro hedge funds as well as more eclectic investors who gravitate to a wider variety of strategies. The trade involves going long Japanese stocks and simultaneously shorting Japanese yen in response to Tokyo’s aggressive push to inject liquidity into the economy and boost growth. Last year the Topix index, which measures the performance of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, surged 49 percent while the Nikkei 225 jumped 57 percent. At the same time, the dollar rose 21 percent versus the yen, the biggest gain against the Japanese currency since 1979.
Ex-Sasco CIO To Freepoint (Finalternatives)
The former chief investment officer at hedge fund Sasco Energy Partners and his team have landed at Freepoint Commodities. Joe Howley was named senior managing director at Freepoint. His traders, Brian Lisoski and Garth Camp, were appointed vice presidents of trading, Reuters reports. “There are very significant hires and signals our commitment to growth and willingness to expand our senior leadership on the natural gas trading side of our business,” Freepoint President Frank Gallipoli said.
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