Editor’s Note: Related Tickers: Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS), Hess Corp. (NYSE:HES), Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRCD), The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS), The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Tudor hedge fund hires leading IMF official (Financial Times)
Hedge funds betting against gold (Sydney Morning Herald)
Hedge-fund managers are making the biggest ever bet against gold as billionaire George Soros sold holdings last quarter and Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) predicted more declines after the longest slump in four years. Gold for immediate delivery lost as much as 1.5 per cent to $US1,338 an ounce, the lowest price since April 18, and traded at $US1,348 in Singapore this morning. Gold mining companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange make up seven of the ten worst performers this morning. Kingsgate Consolidated is down 7.6 per cent, Perseus Mining down 7.4 per cent and Silver Lake Resources 6.6 per cent. Evolution Mining, Alacer Gold, Medua Mining and Troy Resource are also down at least per cent.
US hedge fund Monarch to open office in London (Financial Times)
Monarch Capital, the prominent US distressed debt hedge fund, is opening a new office in London in a sign of growing interest in Europe as the continent’s banks prepare to offload troubled assets and undervalued loans. Monarch, which was formed from the debt trading arm of investment bank Lazard in 2002, has about a fifth of its $5.5bn under management invested in Europe and expects the figure to grow as more opportunities arise. “This is a long-term commitment to investing in Europe and the London financial community,” Michael Weinstock, chief executive of Monarch told the Financial Times.
Boeing Is The New Hedge Fund Favorite (FOX2now.com)
Hedge fund managers are boarding The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA). It’s unclear whether the top hedge fund managers would bet on riding one of Boeing’s troubled Dreamliners, but Boeing was the favorite stock of the top 50 hedge fund managers in the world in the first quarter of 2013, according to FactSet.
Credit: The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA)
Hedge Fund Owner Gets Subpoena to Testify (New York Times)
Steven A. Cohen has received a subpoena to testify before a grand jury in the government’s insider trading investigation into his hedge fund, SAC Capital Advisors, a development that signals a newly aggressive phase in the multiyear inquiry, according to lawyers and executives briefed on the case. Issued last week, the grand jury subpoena came as part of a broader round of requests from criminal authorities. Other SAC executives also received subpoenas to testify before the grand jury, the lawyers and executives said, and the fund itself received requests for information about its activities.
From pension to hedge fund (BDlive)
As has happened to many others, when he was ready to retire Tom de Lange realised his pension could not sustain his lifestyle. Mr de Lange, who spent his working career as a metallurgist at Kumba Iron Ore and retired before the age of 50, decided to take destiny into his own hands. He started playing the stock market and was able to consistently outperform the returns from his pension fund. His company is now Emperor Asset Managers and its Robert Falcon Scott Fund delivered returns of 51.67% to investors over the past year — far exceeding the returns on the JSE’s All Share index.
Brazil’s Vinci sets sights on global partners (Financial News)
Two years ago, Brazilian asset manager Vinci Partners decided to diversify its investments overseas. About 95% of its money was invested in Brazil. Nigel Whittaker now runs Vinci Zafferano Capital, which in November launched the Vinci Zafferano Emerging Markets Opportunity fund with more than $130m in total capital from Vinci, Tudor and the new firm’s partners. Whittaker told Financial News in February that the initial target was to grow the fund to $300m-$400m, adding that, with current resources, it could eventually hit $1bn. Now Vinci is looking to do similar deals. Fabio Pegas, a partner at the $8bn Vinci, told Financial News: “We are looking to invest in up to seven hedge funds [globally] over the course of three to five years. The idea is to benefit from the huge dislocation caused by changes in regulation.”
Billionaire Paul Singer’s Elliott Management Bought Hess Corp. (HES), Sold Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (BRCD) During Q1 (Insider Monkey)
Elliott Management, a hedge fund managed by billionaire Paul Singer since its founding in 1977, has filed its 13F for the first quarter of 2013. Singer increased the size of his position in Hess Corp. (NYSE:HES) to a total of about 17 million shares- over ten times as many as his fund had owned at the beginning of 2013. Elliott had been trying to push the oil and gas company into divesting its downstream operations in order to focus on exploration and production activities and also fighting with the company for control of the Board of Directors. According to the 13F, the fund sold all its shares of Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRCD) after the $2.5 billion market cap networking and data storage systems company had been one of its top picks during Q4.
Treasury Yields Near 2-Month High on Bets Fed to Taper Stimulus (Bloomberg)
Treasury 10-year yields were near the highest in two months on speculation stronger economic data are driving the Federal Reserve closer to tapering the pace of its asset purchases. Treasuries capped a third straight week of losses last week, the longest streak this year, after consumer confidence jumped. Hedge-fund managers and other large speculators held a net-short position in 10-year note futures for the first time in almost two months before the Fed releases minutes of its last meeting and Chairman Ben S. Bernanke testifies before the Congress on economic outlook. Data this week may show sales of existing homes increased in April.
Best 100 Hedge Funds (Barron’s)
Hedge-fund manager Christian Zugel has made a mint in mortgage-backed securities, and he has also been wheeling and dealing in a lot of real estate. He has had to figure out how to fit a growing staff of 73 into a renovated garment factory, originally built by a grandfather of former The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Chairman Michael Eisner near the Jersey shore in the town of Red Bank. Zugel also has moved into bigger quarters in London’s Hanover Square, and is in the process of doubling his space in Shanghai, so his firm, Zais Group, can broaden its research and investor base around the world.
