Leon Cooperman Says ‘Banks are Challenged’

Leon Cooperman knows his way around the markets. Cooperman is the founder and CEO of Omega Advisors, a hedge fund with a portfolio valued at several billion dollars. Before that, Cooperman headed up Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

Leon Cooperman is Bearish on Banking Stocks

Leon Cooperman told CNBC Tuesday that he is “staying away from most banking stocks.” Cooperman explained, “The stock market has 15,000 publicly traded companies that are in my universe.” He said, “I think the banks are challenged. We try to look where we can put together a decent story, and there’s plenty of very cheap stocks.” CNBC notes, Cooperman “does have a small investment in JPMorgan Chase and PNC Financial but his exposure to financial services is mainly through insurers MetLife (MET) and Lincoln National (LNC), and student loan company Sallie Mae (SLM).”

Leon Cooperman is Also Bearish on European Equities

Leon Cooperman is also bearish about European equities. He told CNBC that they make only  6 to 7 percent of his portfolio. While Cooperman did not specify which European equities are in his portfolio, “he said the average yield is over 4 percent, the multiples are all single-digit and very cheap, and half their business is outside Europe. They’re global companies.”