Carl Icahn Reveals Performance of Son Brett’s Portfolio (WSJ)
Stock-picking may run in the family. Within a long letter to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) +0.67% Chief Executive Tim Cook released Thursday, Carl Icahn revealed the returns of a portfolio co-managed by his son, Brett Icahn, and another partner, David Schechter. They managed to beat the market and the returns of most hedge-fund managers. The portfolio, dubbed the Sargon Portfolio, posted a gross annualized return 36.5% from its formation in April 2010 to the end of the third quarter. The S&P 500 has returned an annualized 14.7% in the same span, said Howard Silverblatt, senior analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices.
Wachtell At Risk Of Big Defeat In Bitter Darden Proxy Fight (Law360)
Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz has made a name for itself by mowing down shareholder activists but one of its highest-profile clients this proxy season, Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI), appears headed for defeat when investors vote Friday on a complete board overhaul proposed by activist Starboard Value LP. As the vote nears, some analysts have predicted victory for Starboard, a hedge fund that bought into Florida-based Darden a year ago and has since swelled into the company’s bitter rival. After months of wrangling and escalating tensions, the…
Hedge Fund Billionaire John Paulson’s Comeback Crashes In September (Forbes)
Hedge fund billionaire John Paulson staged an impressive comeback in 2013 following three very tough years for his Paulson & Co. hedge funds, but his rebound crashed badly in September, leaving some of his most important funds down deeply in 2014. Paulson’s Advantage Plus Fund fell by about 11% in September and is now down 14% this year, according to Bloomberg News, which first broke the news of Paulson’s dismal September.
Julien Balkany’s Nanes Balkany Partners Getting More Involved in Panoro Energy (InsiderMonkey)
Nanes Balkany Partners, an activist hedge fund which invests primarily in O&G companies and one of the largest shareholders of Panoro Energy is getting more involved. Panoro in 2013 had retained Evercore to review strategic alternatives, other shareholders had called an EGM, and now the Board is being reconstituted adding Julien Balkany and others. Here is a copy of their press release: Nanes Balkany Partners I LP (“Nanes Balkany”), the New York-based activist hedge fund which invests primarily in oil and gas companies and one of the largest shareholders of Panoro Energy ASA (OSX:PEN) (“Panoro” or the “Company”), today announced its full support and endorsement for the election to the Board of the nominees recommended by Panoro’s Nomination Committee.
Odey Up 9.8% In Sept., Still Negative For The Year (Finalternatives)
Odey Asset Management’s flagship European fund had a strong showing in September, gaining 9.8% for the month, according to Financial News. The gain dwarfs that of its peers, with the MSCI Europe index rising just 0.4%. Following negative performance in June and July, the hedge fund—which manages €1.9 billion—returned 0.5% in August. Overall, the fund was up 8.6% in the third quarter, but despite a good Q3 showing, the fund is still down 5% year-to-date through September.
Billionaire investor on stocks vs. bonds debate (CNBC)
Israeli hedge fund index unveiled (COOConnect)
Tzur Management, a Tel Aviv-based fund administrator and Gilboa, a fund of hedge funds, have launched an index tracking the performance of Israeli hedge funds. The Tzur Gilboa Israeli Hedge Fund Index (TGI) will provide monthly data on any open-ended funds registered, managed or significantly invested in Israel. There is a minimum asset threshold of NIS 10 million to be included on the index. Calculation of TGI will be conducted by taking an equally-weighted average of all funds that meet the eligibility criteria.
The War Chests that Hedge Fund Managers Are Building (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Barry Rosenstein of Jana Partners, William Ackman of Pershing Square Capital Management, Nelson Peltz of Trian Partners and Jeffrey Smith of Starboard Value have a fairly easy way to gather ownership stakes outside their main portfolios when they think a company needs an overhaul… Co-investment vehicles, in which a hedge fund manager pools resources with one or more select investors for a specific investment outside the fund manager’s regular portfolio positions, have helped make it possible for hedge fund managers to put more of their money into positions where they…
Billionaire hedge fund manager offers ‘ethical behaviour bonus’ after last firm fell to insider trading (FinancialPost)
Billionaire Steven A. Cohen, whose hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors LP shut down this year to settle charges of unprecedented insider trading, plans to reward employees at his new investment firm for demonstrating ethical behaviour. Starting next year, some of the managers and analysts at Stamford, Connecticut-based Point72 Asset Management LP can earn an extra bonus of as much as 4% of compensation if they demonstrate adherence to the firm’s compliance policy and ethical standards, contributions to the community and repeated strong investment performance, Mark Herr, a spokesman for the firm, said yesterday in a telephone interview.
Jim Rogers: A lot of Americans are being ruined (FuturesMag)
Legendary investor and market contrarian Jim Rogers told Futures magazine Editor-in-Chief Dan Collins that the current zero-interest rate environment is destroying economic opportunity for many across America, and he denounced the economic policies which prevent wage earners from gaining interest on their savings. “A lot of people are being ruined,” Rogers stated in an interview in the October issue of Futures magazine. “Any pension plans, endowments, etc., are suffering because they invest for the futures and are finding that their situation has gotten worse,” he says.
FBI Allege $311 Million Global Hedge Fund Fraud Scheme (HedgeCo)
Two business associates in the hedge fund management industry have been charged by the FBI with defrauding institutional investors and causing collective losses of more than $311 million. Helmut Kiener is charged by indictment with four counts of wire fraud, two counts of bank fraud, and three counts of money laundering, based on allegations that he devised and directed various investment fraud schemes in concert with his partner John C. Tausche. Tausche is charged by information with one count of bank fraud and one count of money laundering, based on his alleged involvement in the scheme.
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