Third Point hedge performance slumps in August
Tue Sep 18, 2007 4:07 PM ET
By Dane Hamilton
NEW YORK, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Daniel Loeb, the activist investor known for acerbic letters to underperforming companies, could face the wrath of some his own investors after double-digit losses at his Third Point LLC hedge fund group in August.
The New York hedge fund manager, which has about $5.5 billion under management, saw one of his funds sink 13.8 percent in August, while another was down 8.3 percent last month, according to numbers disclosed to investors.
Both funds are still up in the year through August, however, with an offshore fund up 6.7 percent and the other up 7 percent, investors said.
Third Point declined to comment.
The performance comes as the markets appear to be stabilizing after declines in July and August. Most of Third Point's assets are in stocks, according to regulatory filings. Some were hit hard last month.
Third Point, for instance, holds some 357 million shares of NYSE Euronext <NYX.N>, which has fallen from a high of $82.91 on July 16 to close at $70.86 on Tuesday. MasterCard Inc <MA.N>, another major Third Point stock holding, also declined in August.
Like many large investment funds, Third Point holds scores of stocks, but it is best known for its public campaigns involving a very few.
Third Point's assets have doubled over the last year as investors embraced "event driven" hedge fund strategies, which typically involve betting that company events will move their stocks.
The company has most recently stepped up demands on PDL BioPharma Inc <PDLI.O>, repeatedly calling for the resignation of its chairman and pressuring the company to put itself up for sale. Third Point holds nearly 10 percent of PDL as its largest stockholder.
Third Point also pressured pumps maker Flow International Corp <FLOW.O> this year to sell itsself and even offered to buy the company itself, an offer Flow rejected.
Third Point also sought and gained two board seats on Pogo Producing Co <PPP.N> after it agreed to drop plans for a proxy campaign at the energy company. |
