| Louis Bacon Photo: Bloomberg |
One year ago
»» Louis Bacon of $15 billion Moore Capital Management was the subject of an AR cover story that described him as a “macro maestro.”
He might need to compose himself a bit after the past year. Moore’s $4.1 billion Macro Managers fund, much lauded in the article for its diversified manager base, dropped 2.57% in 2011, compared with a 1.17% rise for the AR Macro Index. The firm’s $6.3 billion Moore Global fared similarly, shedding 2.21%. The funds are up 1.96% and 0.49%, respectively, in 2012 through June 14, according to an update from HSBC Private Bank. Firmwide assets have held steady, AR’s Billion Dollar Club rankings show.
At least Bacon has some familiar company. He rehired his older brother Zack earlier this year to a non-investment role.
A Moore spokesman declined to comment.
See also: Louis Moore Bacon: River keeper • Bacon nabs Brevan Howard pro • Louis Bacon Q&A
Five years ago
»» The Perella Weinberg Partners Xerion fund, run by Paloma Partners veteran Daniel J. Arbess, was flying high, up 27.57% in 2007 through the end of May. Arbess credited broad special situations investing for the success, particularly so-called fallen angel equities of firms whose debt had been downgraded from investment grade to junk.
The remainder of the year continued the good cheer, and the fund ended 2007 up 38.83% (see data here). It followed with more strong performance until 2011, when it collapsed 21.38%, compared with a 4.75% drop for the AR Event Driven Index. This year through the end of May, the fund is up 3.95%, similar to the benchmark.
See: Dan Arbess’s Unhedged Commentary • Ex-Deutsche Bank prop team leads new Perella Weinberg equity fund
»» Phil Goldstein’s Bulldog Investors and Edward Horner’s Eden Rock Capital Management took the top awards at the Fifth Annual Hedge Fund Industry Awards gala, put on by Alternative Investment News, one of AR’s predecessor publications.
Goldstein, who famously beat back an attempt by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to mandate hedge fund registration, has continued another battle with the SEC about loosening hedge fund marketing requirements. “Our position has been vindicated—there’s no harm that can come to people who just get information about a hedge fund, provided that they are only sold to sophisticated investors,” InvestHedge database have been marked as liquidated. The firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In another sign of the times, tickets to MTV’s now-defunct Total Request Live show were auctioned off for charity. Some things never change: Hedge funders also bid on a roundtrip helicopter ride to the Hamptons.
See also: The curse of the AIN Awards
