One year ago
»» Hedge fund managers were few and far between at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, an annual gathering of nearly 2,300 leaders from business, politics and the arts. Fewer than 15 large hedge funds attended last year. Major players included Frank Brosens, Eric Mindich, George Soros and Dan Loeb.
It was a similar story at Davos this year, with only a handful of well-known managers attending. Soros and Brosens were repeat speakers. New attendees included Perella Weinberg Partners’ Peter Weinberg, Elliott Management’s Paul Singer, Moore Capital Management’s Louis Bacon Moore, and SAC Capital Advisors’ Steve Cohen.
»» Richard Perry’s then-$7 billion Perry Capital was close to recovering its high watermark after 2008, which had been the firm’s first losing year in two decades. Perry Partners International, the firm’s flagship multistrategy fund, was up 25.2% in 2009 after falling 26.8% in 2008. In an investor letter, Perry warned that 2010 would prove difficult. “This has been a nice party,” he wrote at the time. “We hope the hangover is mild.”
Perry’s warnings of a post-party droop were prophetic, at least in the year’s first half, and he was able to party on hangover free and wake up in time for the post-summer market rally. The Perry Partners International fund finished 2010 up 16.21%, benefiting from increased M&A activity.
Five years ago
»» In 2004, futures mogul John Henry brought Boston its first World Series Championship since 1918 when the Boston Red Sox (of which Henry is the principal owner) swept the St. Louis Cardinals with four straight wins. But Henry’s managed futures firm, John W. Henry & Company, struck out just one year later. In 2005, 10 of the firm’s 11 programs were in the red, with the original long-term trading program dropping 27.7%.
It appears that Henry has regained his footing. All but one of his managed futures programs was in positive territory in 2010, with the best performer up 27.98%.
And in an effort to diversify his sports portfolio, Henry went across the pond and purchased Liverpool Football Club for $476 million in November 2010. Liverpool is one of England’s most successful soccer teams and many believe the purchase price was a bargain.
