Editor’s Note: Related tickers: Sony Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:SNE), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD), salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM), Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (NYSE:PBR), Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)
A classic case of city bureaucracy may stymie Bridgewater Associates’ plan to relocate to a new $750 million headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. The world’s largest hedge fund is planning a move from its Westport home to an 850,000-square-foot center on a 14-acre peninsula in Stamford. But the Stamford Advocate reports a zoning disagreement over a boatyard between the city and BLT, a local land developer, has hindered negotiations. …The hold up has sparked conjecture that Bridgewater head Ray Dalio may scrap the plan entirely and stay in Westport, and Stamford may lose out on as many as 2,000 jobs, $16 million in tax revenue, and $50 million in state funding.
Dan Loeb’s hedge fund Third Point ups Sony stake (Standard)
Billionaire investor Dan Loeb has increased pressure on Sony Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:SNE)’s board by lifting his stake in the electronics group to 7%. The boss of $13 billion (£8.3 billion) hedge fund Third Point believes Sony Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:SNE) should spin off its entertainment unit, which includes one of Hollywood’s leading studios. In a letter to chief executive Kazuo Hirai ahead of the group’s annual meeting on Thursday, Third Point said: “Sony Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:SNE) appears to be regaining its competitive edge. Given our large stake, we reiterate our offer to serve on Sony Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:SNE)’s board of directors.
JPMorgan Plans Private-Equity Spin-Off (Finalternatives)
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) will spin off its internal private-equity unit, which manages some $4.5 billion of the bank’s capital. One Equity Partners, which until now has managed JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)’s money exclusively, will raise a new fund entirely from outside investors and will separate from the bank. One Equity will continue to manage the roughly 30 investments it currently has for JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM). The bank is shedding the unit due to recent uneven returns and a desire to focus on its core businesses. The spin-off has nothing to do with the Volcker Rule, which severely restricts banks’ hedge fund and private-equity activities; because One Equity manages only JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)’s money, it could hold on to the unit under merchant-banking regulations.
Japan will deliver value under Abenomics, says Martin Currie (Risk)
As the G-8 summit in Northern Ireland began with a focus on Syria, the elephant in the room remains the impact of Abenomics, the ambitious stimulus programme initiated by Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. There is no sign hedge funds are deserting the ‘Abe trade’. One hedge fund manager, John-Paul Temperley, investment director, Japan, at Martin Currie Investment Management, remains upbeat on the prospect of the country. “We had actually been positive prior to [the introduction of Abenomics] mainly for a more cyclical reason, with an earnings recovery driven by a positive financial sector cycle taking hold,” says Temperley.
Hedge fund says bid for Smithfield too low (USAToday)
The proposed sale of Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD) to China’s largest meat processor was muddied Monday after a hedge fund suggested investors could get a much better price. New York-based investment firm Starboard Value, which owns about 5.7% of Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD)’s common stock, says Shuanghui International Holdings’ offer of $34 a share could be topped by up to 62%. Starboard suggests Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD) could be worth between $44 and $55 a share if the company were to carve itself into pieces and sell off the units.
Hedge fund manager James Shepherd pleads guilty to commodity pool fraud (Opalesque)
North Carolina hedge fund manager James Alexander Shepherd pleaded guilty to defrauding investors of at least $6m after admitting to using a personal post office box and bogus bank statements to hide his criminal activities for nearly seven years, prosecutors said in a statement. Anne M Tompkins, United States Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina said that the 58-year-old Shepherd admitted to one count of securities fraud. Court documents showed that from 2006 through 2013, Shepherd defrauded over 100 investors in Union County and elsewhere of approximately $6m.
