Shareholder Pressure Helped Lead to New MSG Board Members (NYTimes)
The Madison Square Garden Company surprised many on Monday when it announced — besides exploring a potential breakup of itself — that it was adding two financiers to its board, one being the activist investor Nelson Peltz. But unusually, it wasn’t Mr. Peltz, the veteran of several high-profile board battles, who pushed for a director position, according to people briefed on the matter. Mr. Peltz’s firm, Trian Fund Management, didn’t own any shares of Madison Square Garden as of Monday’s announcement.
Chanos takes profit on his top 2014 short sale: Brazil (HedgeCo)
Hedge fund manager Jim Chanos, the prominent short-seller, said Tuesday he has lightened up on some of his bets against Brazil, saying most of the country’s downside risk is priced in after the sharp selloff over the past two months. “Yes, we are still short but we’ve taken some profits,” Chanos said, speaking at a Reuters summit. “I think we’d be crazy not to.” Brazilian stocks have been hammered over worries about the country’s presidential election, which incumbent Dilma Rousseff narrowly won on Sunday.
SEC Charges New Jersey-Based Hedge Fund Manager with Insider Trading (HedgeCo)
The Securities and Exchange Commission filed insider trading charges against a New Jersey-based hedge fund manager who allegedly used material, nonpublic information to trade in advance of market-moving news concerning Carter’s Inc. Stephen Slawson, who lives in Lebanon, N.J., and was co-founder and former manager to a hedge fund named TCMP3 Partners L.P., becomes the eighth individual that the SEC has charged in connection with the agency’s investigation into insider trading and other misconduct involving the securities of the Atlanta-based marketer of children’s clothing.
Bill Ackman’s $90 million ‘One57’ Luxury Apartment Flip Slowing Down With Increased Empty Apartments Around It (InsiderMonkey)
Bill Ackman is an American Hedge fund manager, who is the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management. Ackman’s firm had a very successful 2014 with more than 25% returns in first half of the year. He is well known for some bold decisions like the investment in Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN), betting on Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) to take over Allergan and effect a surge in Allergan’s stock, which turned out as he planned and returned big. In another bizarre move he is planning to flip a condominium in Manhattan, on which Ackman and a group of investors have invested $90 million. CNBC’s Frank Robert reported about this on CNBC.
Cliffs Natural shares jump after it says has enough liquidity (Reuters)
Shares of Cliffs Natural Resources Inc (NYSE:CLF) shot up as much as 25 percent after the miner said it had “more than enough” liquidity and that it was in talks with three “big steelmakers” to invest in its Bloom Lake iron ore mine in Quebec. Cliffs also said it had settled with its bankers and was no longer in breach of any debt covenants – a position that rose earlier this month after the miner’s plan to write down $6 billion in coal and iron ore assets. Chief Executive Lourenco Goncalves told Reuters that Cliffs was in “active talks” with three equity partners to invest in the development of the second phase of the Bloom Lake mine.
Allergan CEO: Huge momentum in sales growth (CNBC)
Vodafone accused of illegally witholding report on £6bn German takeover (Telegraph)
Vodafone Group Plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:VOD) has been accused of illegally withholding a report on its €7.7bn (£6bn) takeover of Kabel Deutschland as part of a “pattern of obstructing” efforts by shareholders to uncover the details of the deal. The allegation comes from Elliot, the $24bn hedge fund run by Paul Singer, which built up 13.5pc stake in Kabel Deutschland as bid rumours intensified last year. It is now trying to extract a premium for the shares compared with what Vodafone paid for the rest of the German cable operator.
Eaton Partners Hedge Fund Team Named “Best Third Party Marketing Firm” of the Year by Leading Hedge Fund Publication (DigitalJournal)
Eaton Partners is pleased to announce it has been named “Third Party Marketing Firm” of the year by HFMWeek, a leading hedge fund and asset management trade publication. HFMWeek’s panel of judges recognized Eaton’s growth over the last 12 months, its strong project management and distribution capabilities, and solid recommendations from influential industry players and former clients. In addition to raising the most capital in the firm’s history for hedge funds, Eaton recently hired four senior sales professionals to further build its distribution team and two professionals to the firm’s project management team. The additional hires were vital in expanding and supporting a number of new client projects.
Billionaire Spurned by Buffett Pursues Global Wi-Fi Network (BusinessWeek)
James âJayâ Monroe III isn’t in a rush. Dressed in blue jeans and a monogrammed white dress shirt, the investor sips ice water and pauses to greet Dakota, his Great Dane-blue heeler mix who bounds through the Union Pacific Freighthouse in downtown Denver. …It’s also made him a billionaire. He has a net worth of at least $3.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and has never appeared on an international wealth ranking. Monroe, who tried and failed to get Warren Buffett to invest in Globalstar six years ago, said his adult children will be surprised to learn he’s amassed such a fortune.
The Latest Tiger Trend: Private Investments (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Tiger Management Corp. founder Julian Robertson Jr. is getting in on a trend started by some of his disciples in the hedge fund world: making private investments in small companies. Robertson founded his legendary hedge fund firm in 1980 but shuttered its hedge fund in 2000. Nowadays, Robertson’s firm mostly backs other hedge fund managers, particularly those with ties to his former hedge fund, but lately he’s been taking pages out of their playbooks for his own portfolio.
Detroit Inches Closer to Solvency as Pension Creditors Drop Objections (ai-CIO)
The last of Detroit’s major pension debt holders settled their objections to the city’s solvency plan in the eleventh hour, as the city made its final arguments to end bankruptcy. “The end really is in sight,” said Bruce Bennett, Detroit’s lead attorney. “This plan is very broadly consensual at this point and the city has settled with all the objectors and all the major economic players in the city of Detroit.” Investors including hedge fund managers Aurelius Capital Management and bond insurer Financial Guaranty Insurance Company were owed $1 billion by the retirement system. If the city’s plan is passed, the investors will be given $141 million in new notes.
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