Keith Meister’s Corvex Takes Large Stake In Yum Brands: Sources (CNBC)
Earlier, Dan Loeb‘s Third Point took new positions in Yum Brands and Devon Energy while adding to stakes in Japan, according to a letter sent to investors Friday. While Loeb is bullish on the U.S., he noted that Third Point had “invested in more single name shorts this year than in all of 2014 combined,” the letter said, referring to bets he made against some companies. The letter said the firm was “constructive” on the U.S. because of improving economic data and the likelihood of continued low interest rates.
White vs Gold: What’s Next as DuPont and Trian Duke it Out (The Wall Street Journal)
DuPont Co. vs. Trian Fund Management LP is slated to come to a head in a May 13 shareholder vote. The coming days will see several rounds that help determine the outcome. Trian already landed a couple of blows this week when it won endorsements from shareholder advisers Institutional Investor Services Inc. and Glass Lewis & Co., which both said Trian’s Nelson Peltz should get elected.
Warren Buffett Losing Mojo On His Economic ‘moats’ (CNBC)
Warren Buffett has carved out a core stock-picking strategy of investing in companies with strong economic “moats,” businesses that have built, fortified and generated success from well-known brands that make it difficult for them to succumb to competitive forces. But for a number of holdings in his stock portfolio, the moats may be drying up and the walls could be breached.
Hedge Fund Jana Partners Down 0.3 pct In April (Reuters)
Activist hedge fund Jana Partners, which is pressuring Qualcomm Inc. to perform better, told investors that its flagship Jana Partners fund dipped 0.3 pct in April, a person familiar with the number said. That leaves the fund up 1.1 percent for the year to date, lagging the Standard & Poor’s 1.9 percent gain.
U.S. Regulator Charges Firm That Put Money With SAC, Paulson Funds (Reuters)
An investment firm that funneled client money into some of the world’s hottest hedge funds, including SAC Capital and Paulson & Co, on Wednesday was ordered to hire an independent monitor to supervise the final stages of the fund’s shutdown, and to pay nearly $700,000 in fees and penalties to settle charges that executives used clients’ cash to pay for office rent and employee salaries.
Hedge Fund Mangrove Urges Atlantic Power To Return Cash (CNBC)
Hedge fund Mangrove Partners is urging Atlantic Power Corp to return cash to shareholders and could push for a possible sale or break-up of the company, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation. Mangrove, which owns about 7.5 percent of Toronto-listed Atlantic, is looking at all options to unlock value at the owner of U.S. and Canadian power plants, the sources said.
Hedge Funds Eye More Transfer Fees as FIFA Ban Approaches (Bloomberg)
Hedge funds are trying to hold on to a piece of soccer’s $4 billion player transfer market even as the sport’s governing body prepares to shut them out. Skarbiec TFI SA raised 6 million zloty ($1.6 million) to invest in the transfer policy of Poland’s Legia Warsaw, according to Maciej Podgorski, a director for strategy at the Warsaw-based asset manager. Meanwhile, London-based advisory firm Football Finance Group has proposed a model on its website where lenders would receive a bonus payment based on the size of a club’s future transfer-fee income.
