Presidential Election: Stock Winners and Losers

With just 9 days away to the Election Day, Obama’s rating had gained a nudge slightly.

• Gallup: Romney:50, Obama:46
• Rasmussen: Romney:50, Obama:47 (Obama gained a point)
• ABC/Washington Post: Romney:49, Obama:48 (constant)

Here are the likely stock winners and losers, courtesy of CNBC.

Read more here:  Presidential Election: Stock Winners and Losers

Julian Robertson's Stock Recommendation, AK Steel Holding Corp. Call of Technical Buy at $3.90

Legendary hedge fund manager, Julian Robertson graced the media with his rare television interview. He opened with the thought that now is the time to enslave money in the market, as many are trading at great prices. It is interesting that another granddaddy of finance, Warren Buffet recently went on CNBC and also told Becky Quick that he thinks now is a time to “hold” stocks while “salivating” for a big acquisition deal.

For Julian’s long/neutral/short takes, watch the full interview here


 

Read more here: Julian Robertson

5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know about SAC’s Stevie Cohen

Dubbed one of the most successful traders in the world, with an estimated net worth of $8.3 billion as of March 2012 and 196^th richest man in the world according to Forbes, is SAC’s Steven Cohen. Without further ado, here goes the list:

1) Chaos theory. Cohen can see order within chaos and just trade. Quote: “When he was building SAC, people would say things about the way he made his money that were not flattering—we heard all those rumors,” says Gary Goldring, onetime co-C.E.O. of Spear, Leeds & Kellogg, the firm that cleared SAC’s trades. “But let me tell you, as his clearing agent, I’ve seen all his records, hundreds of thousands of trades, all of it, and my conclusion is simply that the guy is an artist. He looks at a stock market in chaos and sees order. He was just right over and over and over. I’ve sat and watched him trade, watched him stare at his terminal in silence, and I can tell you, without a doubt, he is the best that ever was at what he does. On the planet.”

Read more here:  5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know about SAC’s Stevie Cohen

Barron's Top 10 Performing Hedge Funds for 2012

A quick glance on the Barron’s top 10 performing hedge funds in 2012 on a three-year CAGR return (excluding 2009 performance), reveals the following:

1) Size does matter. The top 10 hedge funds typically have AUM under $12 billion. But it cannot be too small as it will not attract investors and in turn be held captive by its size.

2) Most top performers are confined to fixed income space, particularly asset- and mortgage-backed securities. This reveals that securities that were hammered down will eventually recover back to the mean.

Read more here: Barron

Revisiting Bill Ackman’s Long HKD trade

Recall that back in 2011, Ackman had presented long HKD trade idea. Today, news that Hong Kong Buys $603 Million at HKD7.75 to the dollar In First Peg Intervention Since 2009 (Source: Bloomberg), may be a prelude to the possibility of the readjustment of the peg.

Read more here:Revisiting Bill Ackman’s Long HKD trade

A Conversation with Ray Dalio: Key Takeaways

Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest macro hedge fund with AUM $120 billion provided an hour-long interview with CNBC’s Maria Bartiromo. The law of large numbers tells you that it is impossible to manage large AUMs with historical phenomenal returns. Yet, Dalio has defied this logic and has been listed as the top hedge fund by net gains since inception. The interview can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFaRazMpxcM


Read more here: A Conversation with Ray Dalio: Key Takeaways

Investment Ideas From The Top 5 Industries At A 52-Week Low

Studies have shown that beaten-down stocks may be a potential buy if an investor has the stomach for volatility and is able to withstand the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune in order to reap the benefits of long term value investing. The caveat is that stocks that have experienced a precipitous decline are often riskier than other stocks. The reason is because there is an inverse relation between volatility and price. In other words, low price stocks have higher volatility, which is why these companies often have higher default risk due to an increase in financial leverage. For instance, stocks which are trading below $1 in Nasdaq may announce a reverse stock split in order to gain compliance with listing requirements, and they are also perceived to be more risky trades. Read more here: http://seekingalpha.com/article/292143-investment-ideas-from-the-top-5-industries-at-a-52-week-low