DRUCKENMILLER: ‘I’m A 60-Year-Old Washed Up Money Manager’ (BusinessInsider)
This weekend Stan Druckenmiller sat down with the WSJ to talk about hiscontinued crusade for entitlement reform. The legendary hedge fund manager has been visiting schools from Maine to California, encouraging kids to start a revolution to change the way the country spends on the future. The fact that he’s doing this at all is strange — what’s stranger, at least for a Wall Streeter, is how he talks about it. …In an interview with Goldman Sachs earlier this year, Druckenmiller sounded equally futile about his place in an easy-money, QE market. He, like a lot of hedge fund managers, has been critical of Fed Chair Ben Bernanke’s policies.
Paulson & Co. PFR Gold Fund Fell 16 Percent in September (BusinessWeek)
Hedge-fund manager John Paulson’s PFR Gold Fund fell 16 percent in September after bullion and related stocks declined, according to a report to investors obtained by Bloomberg News. Last month’s loss brings the 2013 decline in the $350 million fund, which invests in gold stocks and derivatives, to 62 percent, according to the report. Bullion producers fell 9.4 percent and the metal dropped 5 percent in September after a Federal Reserve policy maker said a small reduction in bond purchases may occur in October and the threat of a U.S. attack on Syria eased.
Hedge fund TCI is Royal Mail’s biggest shareholder (Telegraph)
The London-based hedge fund, known for its aggressive activism, has bought a 5pc stake in the newly privatised delivery company, according to a regulatory announcement filed today. The filing shows that TCI bought 58.2m shares worth around £280m at today’s shareprice. TCI, whose boss Chris Hohn was described as a “locust” by German politicians, is the first to build a disclosable stake in Royal Mail. In the carefully managed sale process two weeks ago, institutional investors were allocated stakes in the company worth 2pc each. Under stock exchange rules, shareholders do not have to declare their positions publicly until they own more than 3pc of the company.
Officials worried as hedge fund now largest landlord in Huber Heights (BizJournals)
City officials in Huber Heights are expressing concern after a New York hedge fund bought 1,900 rental properties earlier this year, according to Bloomberg. Magnetar Capital LLC, a $9 billion hedge fund, acquired the properties in January from Teresa J. Huber, the widow of Charles Huber, who developed the city in the 1950s and 1960s. The value of the deal was not released, but the company raised $71 million in a private placement related to the deal, according to Bloomberg. The total purchase price could be much higher, potentially well over $100 million, depending on the average price per home in the transaction. But either way, the deal likely is one of the largest single real estate purchases in Montgomery County’s history.
Regulation changes the way hedge funds grow (FT)
Few financial institutions have been hit as hard by the onslaught of new global regulation since 2008 as hedge funds. An avalanche of acronyms is threatening to overwhelm the industry’s gentrified enclaves of Connecticut and Mayfair: from AIFMD to Mifid via Fatca and Ucits. Targeted hedge fund rules in both the EU and US, as well as regulations affecting the markets in which hedge funds trade and the manner in which they do so make for an unprecedented set of rules and costs for the once freewheeling hedge fund world to get to grips with.
Highbridge Said to Seek $250 Million for New Asia Hedge Fund (BusinessWeek)
Highbridge Capital Management LLC, the JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) unit that manages about $31 billion, is starting an Asia hedge fund, returning to the market more than two years after shutting a predecessor fund. Highbridge plans to raise about $250 million for the Pan Asia Multistrategy fund when it opens to investors in early 2014, said two people with knowledge of the matter, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The fund is led by 32-year-old Asia head Arjun Menon, who is based in Hong Kong, according to a document seen by Bloomberg News.
Hedge funders for Cory Booker (CNBC)
Alcova AM gets Northern Trust for specialist hedge fund servicing (TheAsset)
Alcova Asset Management has selected Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services to provide a full range of administrative and middle-office outsourcing services to its quantitatively driven, equity market-neutral fund. The mandate from the UK-headquartered quantitative hedge fund manager is the latest announced by Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services. “Fund managers are increasingly looking for solutions that support real-time data delivery,” said Liam Butler, head of Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services Europe.
Citi Identifies “People Alpha” as Key Practice for Maturing Hedge Fund Industry (BusinessWire)
Hedge funds that invest in people management register higher average investment returns than their peers, according to a new survey from Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) Prime Finance. This concept of “people alpha” is the latest potential differentiator for managers in an industry that is becoming increasingly competitive and institutionalized. The survey corroborates numerous other academic studies that have shown the connection between superior performance and an investment in an organization’s people. “Just as hedge funds once claimed ‘operational alpha’ as a differentiator, we believe that ‘people alpha’ will separate some firms from the pack and will soon become an industry norm,” said Sandy Kaul, Global Head of Business Advisory Services at Citi Prime Finance.
US and UK still the dominant regions for hedge funds, says IOSCO survey (Opalesque)
The second International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) Hedge Fund Survey showed that the United States and the United Kingdom still are the two predominant regions where hedge fund managers/advisers are located. IOSCO surveyed 1,044 qualified hedge funds representing assets totalling $1.94tln. These hedge funds are typically domiciled in offshore jurisdiction – the Caymans being the most popular – to enjoy tax benefits and other regulatory perks. In terms of investment strategy, equity oriented strategies are the favourites, while macro-oriented and multi-strategy funds are also significant.
Argentina sics ex-solicitor general on hedge fund (MalaysiaSun)
Former Solicitor General Paul Clement has been hired by Argentina to press its case against Paul Singer‘s Elliott Management, according to Argentine press reports. Earlier this month, the US Supreme Court denied Argentina’s first request to review an appeals-court decision that could force the South American country to pay $1.3 billion to certain creditors including Elliott. Clement, who worked in the Bush administration between 2004 and 2008, is expected to help Argentina present its second petition to the Supreme Court to review its appeal. “The perception is that his experience may …
High Yield with Icahn (MoneyShow)
One of the most successful money managers is paying investors a 6.6% yield for the privilege of multiplying their money, asserts Igor Greenwald, editor of MLP Profits. I’m describing, of course, Carl Icahn, who’s known for raiding cash-rich and mismanaged companies. His savvy picks are working out great for investors who hold shares of Icahn Enterprises LP (NASDAQ:IEP). Better still, IEP is a master limited partnership, with all the tax-deferred benefits of a boring pipeline company. Icahn Enterprises isn’t boring. The man can’t seem to live without drama, whether it’s dressing down Ackman regarding Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) or trying to take Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) away from Michael Dell.
Berkshire Beats Apple as Favorite Stock of Tiger 21 Group (Bloomberg)
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) regained its ranking as the favorite stock pick among U.S. and Canadian multimillionaires, beating Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and fending off the increasing preference for exchange-traded funds. Members of Tiger 21, a New York-based group of wealthy investors, selected Berkshire in an annual survey of preferred investments scheduled to be released today. Apple, which had held the No. 1 spot the last two years, slipped to No. 2. “The bloom is off of Apple,” Michael Sonnenfeldt, founder and chairman of Tiger 21, said in an interview…
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