Hedge Funds Disclose Moves In These 3 Companies Ahead of Christmas

In a Schedule 13G filing, Levin Capital Strategies L.P., managed by John A. Levin, reported owning 3.56 million shares in Milacron Holdings Corp (NYSE:MCRN), accounting for 5.3% of the company’s outstanding shares. This compares with the 1.27 million-share position revealed through the Levin Capital’s latest 13F filing. On June 30, the producer of plastics manufacturing equipment completed its initial public offering (IPO) by selling nearly 14.29 million shares at a price of $20.00 per share. The net proceeds from the IPO were used to repay some of its existing debt. Meanwhile, shares of Milacron Holdings Corp (NYSE:MCRN) have lost 35% since the IPO, but analysts have great expectations on the company’s earnings potential. The stock trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 7.93, which is significantly lower than the average of 17.19 for the companies included in the S&P 500 Index. The company reported sales of $873.2 million for the first nine months of 2015, as compared with $890.8 million reported a year ago. Milacron has been implementing an organizational redesign and cost reduction initiatives, which are anticipated to result in annual run-rate cost savings of $35 million by the end of 2017. The number of smart money investors with positions in the company declined to 11 from 16, while the overall value of these positions shrank to $67.28 million from $152.04 million quarter-on-quarter. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Advisors reported owning 543,888 shares of Milacron Holdings Corp (NYSE:MCRN) through its most recent 13F filing.

As stated by another 13D filing, Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings currently holds a 28.24 million-share position in Resolute Forest Products Inc. (NYSE:RFP), which corresponds to 31.6% of the company’s outstanding common stock. The investment firm owned 29.05 million shares in the company on September 30, as revealed in the latest round of 13Fs. The company operates in the forest products industry, offering a wide array of products that include: newsprint, specialty papers, market pulp and wood products. The stock has lost 56% since the beginning of the year and appears to be in a bottoming-out phase at the moment. Resolute Forest Products Inc. (NYSE:RFP) sales for the first nine months of 2015 totaled $2.75 billion, down by 14% or $452 million year-over-year. This decrease was mainly attributable to lower shipments of specialty papers and newsprint, mainly due to capacity rationalization efforts driven by market dynamics. The company’s net income, excluding special items, for the nine-month period of this year reached $2 million, down from $4 million reported a year ago. Meanwhile, 20 hedge funds from our database had positions in the company at the end of the third quarter, amassing 48.40% of its outstanding shares. Michael Johnston’s Steelhead Partners cut its position in Resolute Forest Products Inc. (NYSE:RFP) by 23% during the July-to-September period to 6.95 million shares.

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