Hottest links for Friday, February 7th, the late edition. Get our free daily newsletter (which HAS BEEN RECENTLY UPDATED) and never miss a single linkfest. Also, now if you sign up you will get our new e-book on value investing.
Top stories for today are included below. Some great stories to put a capstone on your work week, including selloffs really putting the hurt on some top funds, a note telling you to be prepared to lose 50% of your assets at any time, and other such happy news.
Hottest Links: Stories
Value Investing
Senator Investment Group’s Thesis on Air Products & Chemicals (Q4 Letter)
Alex Klabin and Doug Silverman’s hedge fund Senator Investment Group has built a sizable position in Air Products & Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) in the fourth quarter, according to their Q4 letter. [Market Folly]
Jerry Seinfeld on Jos. A. Bank and Men’s Warehouse
The Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc (NASDAQ:JOSB) and The Men’s Wearhouse, Inc. (NYSE:MW) pacman like dance fascinates me. These are companies I don’t quite get selling products I don’t want. [John Hempton Bronte Capital]
Magix AG: a slow motion management buyout
Magix AG (ETR:MGX) (FRA:MGX) is a German software company that has two thirds of its market cap in cash. I have a weak spot for cash rich businesses, especially when they are profitable and are returning significant amounts of cash to shareholders. [Alpha Vulture]
Intrinsic Value: A Big Deal?
Here is an email I received from a tribesman yesterday… I agree that evaluating and buying great businesses at the correct price (i.e. prices below the intrinsic value) is of utmost importance. [Vishal Khandelwal, Safal Niveshak]
Funds
Nightmare On Wall Street
Secular bull markets are great parties. Investors arrive from secular bears really wanting to take the edge off. As the bull proceeds, above-average returns become intoxicating. By the time it is over, the past decade or two has delivered bountiful returns. [Ed Easterling, Crestmont Research]
Big Debate Over Sell-Off
Following a 28% rise to all-time highs in 2013, the S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) has fallen 4% in 2014. Naturally, everyone wants to know what is driving the sell-off. [Matthew Boesler, Business Insider]
Prince Alwaleed Not As Pleased As You Might Think
Here a list of things Prince Alwaleed has no problem being associated with: A net worth of 30, and not 20, billion dollars; Keeping numerous framed photos of himself in his office; Going all Single White Female on Warren Buffett’s ass; Matching his outfit to his horse; Texting world leaders in the middle of the night; Being able to fit into pants he bought 30 years ago. [Bess Levin, DealBreaker]
Serious Fraud Office under fresh fire over missing records
The Serious Fraud Office has been described in court as chaotically run, with key documents not kept or going missing.. [Caroline Binham, FT]
Hedge Funds Preparing for $1 Trillion Property Bill: Mortgages
Axonic Capital LLC, LibreMax Capital LLC and Saba Capital Management LP are among firms positioning to provide loans as more than $1 trillion in commercial real-estate debt originated before the property crash comes due over the next three years. [Sarah Mulholland, Bloomberg]
Emerging markets selloff bruises big-name funds
The plunge in emerging markets is taking a bite out of the performance of funds managed by some of the biggest names on Wall Street, including BlackRock, Brevan Howard and T. [Luciana Lopez and Tommy Wilkes, Reuters]
Stock Investors: Prepare to Lose 50% at Any Time
If you’re a stock investor, you should always be prepared to lose at least 50% of your money in a few months’ time—and if you’re not prepared to do, that you don’t belong in the market. [Robert Sabat, MoneyBeat]
Preet Bharara: Now 79 for 79 on Insider-Trading Cases
Following a jury’s conviction Thursday of former SAC portfolio manager Mathew Martoma, Wall Street’s top prosecutor Preet Bharara is 79 for 79 on insider trading cases during his tenure as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. [Maureen Farrell, MoneyBeat]
Hottest Links: Not The Onion
Industrial band Skinny Puppy bills the US government for torturing prisoners with its music
The band was alerted to its music being used for torture by a former guard who was also a Skinny Puppy fan. “I think he was coming at it from the fact that he was shocked that our music was being used,” said Key, “because although he was a guard at Guantanamo Bay, he also happened to be a fan of our music.” [Nathan Ingraham, The Verge]
