Veteran Stock Picker Michael Karsch Plans to Launch Hedge Fund (Wall Street Journal)
Veteran stock picker Michael Karsch said he is planning to launch a hedge-fund firm this year. The hedge-fund manager closed down his $1.8 billion Karsch Capital Management in late 2013, telling investors at the time he wanted to “take a step back, reflect on my experiences and begin to think about the next chapter of my career.” After helping build out a cold-pressed juice business and consulting for billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller during his time away, that next chapter, it turns out, is starting another hedge fund.
Elliott Builds Holding in German Toolmaker DMG Mori Seiki (Bloomberg)
Elliott Management, the hedge fund run by billionaire Paul Singer, has built up a stake in DMG Mori Seiki AG, the German machine-tool maker that has attracted a takeover offer from its Japanese partner. DMG Mori Seiki is examining a notification from Elliott saying it has bought a stake in the Bielefeld, Germany-based company, spokeswoman Tanja Figge said by telephone. She declined to say how large the holding is.
Ackman Poised to Win Zoetis Board Seats (Reuters)
Hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management is pressing for seats on animal health company Zoetis Inc’s board of directors, with an eye to pushing through cost cuts and a possible merger, according to sources familiar with the negotiations. Pershing Square, the $18 billion fund run by activist billionaire William Ackman, became the biggest shareholder in Zoetis last year, spending about $1.54 billion for an 8.5 percent stake, and has been holding behind-the-scenes talks over the makeup of the board ahead of a Feb. 12 deadline for nominations.
As Oil Prices Crater, Hedge Funds Dive In (CNBC)
As oil prices round out a month of trading in the $40 range, hedge funds in both the U.S. and abroad are grabbing at investment opportunities in a distressed energy sector. In recent months, a spate of money managers, including Lansdowne Partners, Avenue Capital, Carlson Capital and Blackstone’s GSO Capital unit, have been raising fresh capital to deploy in either long-short energy stock picking, credit investing, or both. At the same time, hedge-fund investors say that finding ways to home in on the distressed oil industry has been a top priority of late.
Two Executives Leave Fortress After Losses in Macro Fund (Reuters)
Two executives at hedge fund Fortress Investment Group are leaving the firm after its macro fund suffered heavy losses in the wake of the recent currency market upheaval, three sources familiar with the moves said. Chief Risk Officer Sherif Sweillam and portfolio manager Tye Schlegelmilch resigned this month, the sources said. Neither Sweillam nor Schlegelmilch could be reached at Fortress on Wednesday.
Hedge Fund Profits Drop 30% In 2014 (CNBC)
The hedge fund industry’s profits fell by 30 percent to $21.9 billion in 2014 from $31.2 billion a year ago as poor returns led to lower performance fees, Citigroup said in a report on Thursday. The drop means a significantly reduced bonus pool of $9.2 billion for the fund managers and analysts running the nearly $3 trillion industry in 2014, as compared with $23.1 billion in 2013, and an increased pressure on smaller hedge fund firms as they rely more on a fixed management fee for survival.
Stock Picking, Large-Cap Rally Boosts Top Japan Hedge Funds (Bloomberg)
Pickers of small company shares and money managers who anticipated a year-end rally in large-capitalization stocks were the best performers among Japan-focused hedge funds last year. Hayate Partners Pte’s Japan Equity Long Short Fund returned 19.4 percent in 2014, boosted by its holding in F&M Co., a small provider of book-keeping services whose shares surged 83 percent. The Monterey Japan Equity Fund gained 19.8 percent from shorting smaller-cap shares that dropped toward the end of the year and benefited from central bank monetary easings that lifted stocks of food and pharmaceutical companies.
Venezuelan Hedge Fund Manager To Learn Sentence For Massive Connecticut Fraud Scheme (Fox News)
Nearly four years after he confessed to running a massive fraud scheme, a former hedge fund manager is expected to be sentenced in a Connecticut case that had its biggest fallout in Venezuela, where the state oil company had hundreds of millions of dollars invested with the disgraced financier. Francisco Illarramendi pleaded guilty in March 2011 to several counts of fraud and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
