Paulson Tripled Shire Stake Before Deal Fell Apart (Finalternatives)
John Paulson clearly did not see the collapse of pharmaceutical giant AbbVie Inc (NYSE:ABBV)’s deal with rival Shire coming. Paulson’s hedge fund nearly tripled its stake in Shire PLC (ADR) (NASDAQ:SHPG) in the months before the $54 billion merger foundered last month. It also opened a position in AbbVie itself during the third quarter, according to a regulatory filing. Those positions took a beating when AbbVie walked away from the deal last month, after the U.S. Treasury Department instituted new rules limiting so-called tax inversions, in which U.S. companies acquire smaller foreign firms to move their headquarters abroad, saving on taxes. Shire is based in Ireland.
Quindell silent as investors mull MBO amid hedge fund rumours (CityAM)
Insurance services firm Quindell has declined to comment on investor speculation that the company is seeking a cash injection in order to carry out a management buyout (MBO). The firm is reported to be in talks with several hedge funds in a bid to gain fresh capital, and shareholders have flagged up the possibility that the firm’s management may use the money to buy the company. Quindell’s share price has plummeted in recent weeks, and slumped significantly last week after the firm was forced to clarify the details of a share transfer agreement between three of the company’s directors and Equities First Holdings.
Fink’s Hedge Fund ISAM Starts Foreign-Exchange Brokerage (BusinessWeek)
International Standard Asset Management Ltd., the London-based hedge-fund firm run by Stanley Fink, is starting a foreign-exchange brokerage to target institutional investors. The service, IS Prime, will provide prime brokerage, traditional and non-traditional liquidity and risk-management solutions, ISAM said in an e-mailed statement. Jonathan Brewer and Raj Sitlani joined the firm as managing partners from Sucden Financial Ltd., where Brewer was the head of electronic currency trading sales and Sitlani ran global institutional sales.
Perella Weinberg to Close Xerion Hedge Fund (WSJ)
A high-profile hedge-fund manager is throwing in the towel, the latest retreat in an industry that has struggled to navigate this year’s volatile markets. Daniel Arbess, known for his public predictions on macroeconomic trends, said Friday that he is shutting down the $600 million Perella Weinberg Partners Xerion fund that he has managed since 2002. Investors in the fund, which at its peak boasted more than $3 billion under management, will get their money back next month, according to a letter reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
SAC’s Cohen To Face Wide-Ranging Deposition In Divorce Suit (Law360)
SAC Capital Advisors LP founder Steven Cohen will be deposed next month in a suit claiming he hid assets during a 1990 divorce proceeding and could face broader questions about insider trading at the hedge fund, a New York federal judge said Monday. Judge Loretta Preska said she would allow attorneys for Cohen’s ex-wife Patricia Cohen to question him about “prior acts that are alleged to be untruthful,” including his denial of any role in insider trading at SAC. The hedge fund and eight current and…
Ackman’s win-win (CNBC)
Boston Partner Todd Bourell to Leave ValueAct Capital (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Todd Bourell, one of the partners at activist hedge fund firm ValueAct Capital Partners, is leaving at the end of the year, according to reliable sources. Bourell, who has been with the San Francisco-based firm since 2001, is the only person working out of ValueAct’s Boston office. Sources say this set-up was not working even in the information age. The move won’t affect ValueAct. In fact, this is not very surprising given that in recent years many hedge fund firms have been…
Hedge fund Oceanwood raises $2 bln, to close to new investors (Reuters)
Europe-focused hedge fund Oceanwood Capital Management is closing its fund to new investors after its assets under management hit $2 billion recently, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said. Oceanwood, a multi-strategy hedge fund spinout from Tudor Group, started the year at $1.28 billion and raised money this year from clients including a $50 million investment from School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS). “We plan to take some time to digest the recent growth, as well as ensure that we have the appropriate level of infrastructure and resources in all areas of the organisation,” the source said, citing a letter to investors sent by Oceanwood.
TransCanada Faces Spinoff Pressure From Hedge Fund (WSJ)
New York hedge fund Sandell Asset Management Corp. suggested Monday that TransCanada Corporation (NYSE:TRP) could boost its share price by 31% if it spun off its power-generation business and accelerated the transfer of more U.S. pipeline assets into a more tax-efficient structure. Sandell, which oversees about $1 billion in assets, outlined its ideas in a letter to the Calgary, Alberta, company’s board, arguing the stock would trade at its “intrinsic value” of 75 Canadian dollars if the plan was adopted, up from the C$57.18 level it traded at recently in Toronto. It made the letter public two days before TransCanada is set to meet analysts and investors Wednesday to review the company’s strategy.
Sliced Investing Raises $2 Million to Simplify Hedge Fund Investing for Accredited Investors (DigitalJournal)
Sliced Investing, an investment platform connecting accredited investors to hedge fund investments, announces today that it has closed seed financing of $2 million to expand the platform and grow its user base. Venture capital firms Khosla Ventures, Triple Point Ventures and Data Collective invested alongside technology incubator Y Combinator. Sliced Investing will use the seed round to develop new funds for investors and accelerate their growth. Co-founders Michael Furlong and Akhil Lodha are applying their financial backgrounds from Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and Motif Investing to help accredited investors, who have historically not had streamlined access to hedge funds, gain exposure to the asset class.
BofAML: Hedge Funds Underperform S&P 500 (Finalternatives)
Hedge funds trailed the S&P 500 for the week ending November 12, according to the latest Bank of America Merrill Lynch Hedge Fund Monitor. The diversified hedge fund index was up 0.1% for the week while the S&P 500 was added 0.7%. Macro funds were the best hedge fund performers for the monitored period, adding 0.3%, while convertible arbitrage were the worst, shedding 0.9%. BofAML analyst MacNeil Curry said market neutral funds trimmed their market exposure to a negative 2% net short position from 0% net long. Equity long/short funds cut their exposure to 34% net long from 42% net long, below the 35-40% benchmark level.
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