Hedge fund investor Loeb takes stake in Nokia (TelecomPaper)
Hedge fund investor Daniel Loeb has acquired a stake in Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) and said he sees good prospects for the company after the planned sale of its handset activities to Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). Loeb said in a letter to investors in his Third Point hedge fund that he expected Nokia to distribute a “meaningful portion” of the handset business sale proceeds “in coming quarters”, the Financial Times reports. He did not reveal the size of the stake that Third Point has taken in Nokia. Nokia is expected to have close to EUR 8 billion in net cash after it completes the EUR 5.4 billion sale to Microsoft.
Hedge fund king Dalio tells how it all works on YouTube (BusinessTimes)
TAKE a look at the lessons in Dalio 101. Ray Dalio, the 64-year-old founder of Bridgewater Associates, the largest hedge fund in the world with some US$150 billion under management, has quietly begun teaching his investment secrets on YouTube. Mr Dalio, who is said to be worth some US$13 billion, was one of the few investors to see the financial crisis of 2008 developing, and perhaps just as important, the rebound. He’s made his money by predicting big macroeconomic cycles. His economic theories, up until now, have been known only to a small group of investors and those willing to pay his firm 2 per cent management fees and 20 per cent of the investment profits.
Big Hedge Fund Investors Are Abandoning JC Penney (Forbes)
The era of J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) being a plaything for bigfoot hedge fund investors appears to be coming to a close. The struggling retailer has humbled some of the biggest names on Wall Street—handing them losses and leaving them with egg on their faces after they bet that the company could stage something of a rebound. Larry Robbins, whose Glenview Capital hedge fund had been on a roll until it became one of the biggest shareholders of JC Penney, reportedly has sold off part of its stake in JC Penney.
Hedge Funds Revealing Puerto Rico Too Cheap to Fail: Muni Credit (BusinessWeek)
Hedge funds such as Maglan Capital LP and MeehanCombs LP are helping fuel a rally in Puerto Rico debt, signaling that investors who have the most appetite for risk expect the worst may be over for the commonwealth’s bonds. As yields on obligations of the struggling U.S. territory soared to records in recent weeks, David Tawil, 38, co-founder of New York-based Maglan Capital, has been buying. The purchases mark the first foray into municipal debt for the fund, which typically focuses on distressed U.S. companies. The moves add demand to the $3.7 trillion municipal market at a time of record withdrawals by individuals.
Investor Ader turns to full-time activism with new firm (Reuters)
Former Wall Street gaming analyst Jason Ader tried his hand at activism this year, going to battle with a U.S slot-maker International Game Technology in a successful campaign to win a board seat for his firm. Now he appears to be making a deeper commitment to activist investing. Ader has merged his Ader Investment Management with hedge fund Cumberland Associates to form a new activist firm called Owl Spring Asset Management, the company is scheduled to announce Wednesday.
The world is in ‘gigantic asset bubble’: Faber (CNBC)
Top hedge fund to shut down U.K operation (HereIsTheCity)
Two executives of SAC Capital Advisors went to the firm’s London offices across from St. Paul’s Cathedral Tuesday to deliver some unwelcome news. Bloomberg reports that Tom Conheeney, SAC’s president, and Sol Kumin, the chief operating officer, told their more than 50 employees there they were shutting the U.K. operation by the end of the year. Steven Cohen’s $14bn hedge-fund firm, which had previously assured staff that it planned to continue business as usual after U.S. prosecutors charged it with insider trading, would have to scale back, they said.
Welcome to Shanghai’s Hedge-Fund District (WSJ)
In another bid to make Shanghai a stronger financial center, the city is trying to establish a beachhead for China’s fledgling hedge-fund industry. The northern district of Hongkou plans to draw in several dozen hedge funds to set up offices by the end of next year. The firms, most of them local, will get “pretty generous” tax, rent and other incentives to establish themselves in what will be Shanghai’s “hedge-fund park,” said Kenny Li, CEO of asset manager KKM Capital, which is helping the government set up resources for the funds. The first offices will be in the 47-story Citic Plaza building, although the plan is to expand into the surrounding neighborhood as more hedge funds join, added Mr. Li.
Icahn sells big Netfix stake for 457% profit (USAToday)
Activist investor Carl Icahn sold more than half of his Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) stake for a 457% profit. He says he and funds run by his son and a partner bought the shares for about $58 each, and sold them in several blocks this month for $304.23 and $341.44 apiece. A filing on Tuesday shows he still owns 2.7 million shares, or 4.5%, of the Los Gatos, Calif., company. Netflix shares hit an all-time high on Tuesday of $389.16. But investors started taking profits off the table, and it closed down 9% at $322.52.
Judge Detects Logical Flaw In ‘Hedge Fund Husband Pays For Both Divorce Lawyers’ Rule (DealBreaker)
Amanda Sykes, the unemployed wife of hedge fund big George Sykes, will have to dip into her own assets instead of relying on her husband’s deep pockets to fund her high-stakes divorce…. George Sykes “has every incentive to curtail the litigation to the extent possible, even if that means accepting a settlement that falls short of what he wants. The wife, on the other hand, without any ‘skin in the game,’ does not have the same incentive insofar as her litigation costs are being paid for completely by her adversary,” Cooper said…. Mayerson said that Amanda was demanding $1.5 million from her ex for the rest of her life in addition to half his fortune.
Jelly Belly Candy Chair and New York Hedge Fund Manager Underwriting Anti-Trans Student Initiative (Frontiersla)
Like to munch on those gummy bears or jelly beans or candy corn as you spruce up your Halloween costume? Well, for every handful of what you think might be good, clean fun or a childhood sense memory, you’re putting money into the pocket of one of the men who’s trying to take away the rights of trans and non-gender-conforming expressive students. …Sean Fieler, the president of Equinox Partners, a New York hedge fund, was Mr. Blankenhorn’s largest donor, until he quit the board. Mr. Fieler, whose average annual donation “ranged from $200,000 to $250,000,” said that a pro-marriage movement could not so easily accept gay and lesbian allies, not if they were seeking marriage rights.
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