Hedge Fund News: Leon Cooperman, Renaissance Technologies, Marcato Capital

Leon Cooperman On Insider Trading Charges: ‘We Acted Appropriately And Lawfully’ (CNBC)
Billionaire hedge fund titan Leon Cooperman told CNBC on Tuesday he won’t enter a deal with regulators to settle insider trading charges and he insisted he has always followed the law. In a statement he gave to CNBC before his appearance on “Squawk Box,” Cooperman said: “We could have settled this matter with the SEC for an amount that is far less than I donate to charity every year. But I refused to do so because I know that we acted appropriately and lawfully.” The Omega Advisors chairman and CEO also said: “It took me 50 years of very hard work, long hours and playing by the rules to get where I am professionally, and I’m not going to let my legacy be destroyed unfairly.”

Renaissance Technologies: Hedge Fund on a $7 Billion Winning Streak (The Wall Street Journal)
Many hedge funds and mutual funds are slashing fees, laying off employees and losing customers following years of subpar performance. Then there is Renaissance Technologies LLC. The hedge-fund firm, which relies on closely held computer models and algorithms, has staged a comeback after an uneven spell, with its funds posting market-beating gains for more than the past year. Now they are getting a cash influx, even as rivals suffer withdrawals. Renaissance attracted more than $7 billion in new investor money over the past year from wealthy clients of UBS Group AG, Citigroup Inc. and others, according to people close to the matter.

Buffalo Wild Wings Ignores Marcato, Adds Three New Directors (Reuters)
Restaurant operator Buffalo Wild Wings Inc named three independent directors to its board, ignoring activist hedge fund Marcato Capital Management‘s offer of a nominee. The company said on Tuesday it appointed Andre Fernandez, Hal Lawton and Harmit Singh, expanding its board to nine from eight directors. Marcato, which holds a 5.2 percent stake in Buffalo Wild Wings, said in August that it would be “inappropriate” to add new directors without consulting its major shareholders and offered a “senior” Marcato executive to serve on the company’s board.