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Want Better Hedge Fund Returns? Try One Led by a Woman

DealBook, January 15th, 2014

By William Alden

In the world of hedge funds, a relative few have a woman at the helm. And yet, these funds may be the standouts from the bunch, a new report argues.

In the years since the financial crisis, hedge funds managed by women performed better than a broader index that reflects the performance of the industry, according to a report released on Wednesday by the professional services firm Rothstein Kass. The report seeks to show that this “alpha” – superior returns, in Wall Street speak – is no mere fluke.

“There is meaningful alpha to be gained from investing in women-owned and -managed funds,” Meredith Jones, a director at Rothstein Kass who wrote the report, said in an interview. “There appear to be both behavioral and biological factors that impact women’s ability to manage money and make them consistent.”

From the beginning of 2007 through June 2013 – a period that includes the dark days of the crisis – a Rothstein Kass index of women-run hedge funds returned 6 percent, the report says. By comparison, the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index, released by Hedge Fund Research, fell 1.1 percent during that time, according to the report.

Last year through November, the index of women-run funds had a 9.8 percent return, compared with a 6.13 percent rise in the broader index, the research showed. (Still, both indexes fell short of the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index, which rose about 27 percent during that time.)

The report, titled “Women in Alternative Investments: A Marathon, Not a Sprint,” used a group of 82 hedge funds managed or owned by women. Last year, the firm said that female hedge fund managers produced a return of 8.95 percent through the third quarter of 2012, compared with a 2.69 percent net return for the broader index.

While highlighting the accomplishments of women in hedge funds, private equity and venture capital, this year’s report also draws attention to persistent gender disparities on Wall Street.

The research, based on a survey in September and October of 440 senior women in the alternative investments business, suggests that the vast majority of the top jobs are held by men. Of the women surveyed, only 15.5 percent said their firm was owned or managed by a woman. Among hedge funds in particular, 21.4 percent were owned or managed by women.

About 42 percent of the respondents said their firm had no general partners who were women. And nearly 40 percent of the firms included in the survey had no women on their investment committees.

In that context, hedge funds run by women remain something of a niche. Some institutional investors, like public pension funds, have a specific mandate to invest a portion of their money in funds run by women or minorities.

Though these mandates can be motivated by political factors, Rothstein Kass is seeking to show that investing with women managers can be a wise choice for purely financial reasons. A handful of studies have suggested that women traders behave differently than their male counterparts, acting less impulsively.

John Coates, a former trader who is now a research fellow in neuroscience at the University of Cambridge, argued in a 2012 book, “The Hour Between Dog and Wolf,” that testosterone contributed to market swings. Hiring more women on trading floors, he wrote, might have a stabilizing effect.

But these ideas are far from mainstream, and the industry has been slow to change. A fourth of investors surveyed by Rothstein Kass said they expected their allocations to women-run funds to increase “somewhat” in 2014, while 2 percent expected to allocate “significantly” more money.

Though the study expected more women to start their own funds in the coming years, the scarcity of such funds is itself an obstacle, a “chicken or the egg” problem, said Kelly Easterling, an audit principal at Rothstein Kass who contributed to the report.

“Without a large supply of funds, it’s difficult to achieve appropriate portfolio diversification or, for that matter, put enough money to work to move the performance dial,” she said in a statement quoted in the report. “On the other hand, until there is more money flowing to women-owned and -managed funds, it’s unlikely that there will be a stampede of new fund launches.”

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Beer is much more than just a refreshing drink. 

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Private Equity has a new Lobbyist: Ken Mehlman

Ken Mehlman former head of the RNC and the public affairs chief at KKR is now the top lobbyist for the private equity industry. Mr. Mehlman was elected on Thursday to be the chairman of The Private Equity Growth Capital Council.

PEGCC is the most prominent advocacy group for equity and capital firms such as TPG Capital, Silver Lake, Apollo Global Management, Carlyle Group and Blackstone Group. PEGCC was launched in 2007 and is currently being run by president and chief executive officer Steve Judge. Mehlman is succeeding Mark Tresnowski in this position. Tresnowski was a top lawyer for Madison Dearborn Partners.

“As a member of the PEGCC’s Board of Directors, Ken has long been a driving force behind our major initiatives,” said Steve Judge, PEGCC President and CEO. “We’re very pleased to have him as our new chairman. Ken is a unique talent with two decades of experience at the highest levels of government, politics and business. The PEGCC and our members will benefit tremendously from his leadership, advice and counsel.” 

Mr Mehlman's primary responsibilities will be to help expand the PEGCC's outreach as well as educate and engage stakeholders about the value of the private equity industry. At KKR Mr. Mehlman has had a large role in formalizing KKR's outreach efforts including creating robust environmental, social and governance programs for the firms and its portfolio companies. 

“I’m privileged to succeed Mark as Chairman of the PEGCC,” said Mr. Mehlman. “I have enormous respect for the PEGCC’s important work engaging with public policy makers to encourage more economic growth and retirement security for millions of Americans. I also share the PEGCC’s goal of building a community of investors who seek superior returns while also emphasizing active, responsible governance, long term investment and measuring success in years not quarters.

“I would personally like to thank Mark for his invaluable contributions and leadership for PEGCC and the industry as a whole throughout his tenure as Chairman,” said Steve Judge, PEGCC President and CEO. “From our many legislative battles over carried interest and the Dodd-Frank Act to the 2012 presidential election that brought our industry into the national spotlight, Mark provided the PEGCC with exceptional leadership."

Our Pro Traders and Chief Market Strategists, Gareth Soloway and Nick Santiago work tirelessly for one purpose, to help our Elite group of intelligent…

Our Pro Traders and Chief Market Strategists, Gareth Soloway and Nick Santiago work tirelessly for one purpose, to help our Elite group of intelligent traders and investors profit from the markets. Over the past 6+ years of revealing their guidance to the public via InTheMoneyStocks, they have achieved just that, enlightening and empowering their members.  But don’t hear it from us, check out our member testimonial and InTheMoneyStocks Review videos by clicking here. If you are looking for a real InTheMoneyStocks Review, and an inside view of what our members are thinking, it doesn’t get more real than that.  Happy New Year To All Of Our Loyal Members!  Enjoy it and be ready to take 2014 by storm! Now take a look at what our members are saying today on our Facebook fan page:

Let’s close out 2013 with this: The 20 smartest things Jeff Bezos has ever said. (You’re welcome.) http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/09/09/the-25-smartest-things-jeff-bezos-has-ever-said.aspx#.Ur5ADWRDvRc

US Olympic CEO: Russian bombings ‘a preview of what could happen’ in Sochi

(Photo via TODAY)

With just over a month to go before the Winter Olympics get underway in Russia, a top U.S. Olympic official addressed the pair of deadly attacks during a 24-hour period this week in the Russian city of Volgograd. 

More from TODAY

Lazard Global Total Return and Income Fund (LGI)

Lazard Global Total Return and Income Fund ( LGI ) will begin trading ex-dividend on December 10, 2013. A cash dividend payment of $0.09073 per share is scheduled to be paid on December 23, 2013. Shareholders who purchased LGI stock prior to the ex-dividend date are eligible for the cash dividend payment. This marks the 12th quarter that LGI has paid the same dividend. At the current stock price of $16.86, the dividend yield is 6.46%.

The previous trading day's last sale of LGI was $16.86, representing a -6.8% decrease from the 52 week high of $18.09 and a 15.48% increase over the 52 week low of $14.60.

For more information on the declaration, record and payment dates, visit the LGI Dividend History page. Our Dividend Calendar has the full list of stocks that have an ex-dividend today.

Original Article Here

Gold has become the most hated commodity lately. What happened to the days when everyone had to own the precious metal? After all, more and more centr…

Gold has become the most hated commodity lately. What happened to the days when everyone had to own the precious metal? After all, more and more central banks around the world are printing money faster than ever. The Federal Reserve (U.S. central bank) is still creating $85 billion a month out of thin air. Other central banks in England, Japan, Asia, and Europe continue to do the same thing. So why has gold struggled so much? It seems that gold is now trading inversely to the USD/JPY (U.S. Dollar vs the Japanese Yen). Today, the USD/JPY is falling sharply and this is causing gold futures to rally. Currently, the USD/JPY chart remains in an up-trend on the daily chart. Up-trending markets are very tough to fight since that is where the momentum is. Should the USD/JPY chart start to fall gold should start to trade higher. Traders and investors might need to take a wait and see approach, but I would say that you shouldn’t get too bearish on gold at this stage of the game. Gold could be setting up to make a sharp move higher very soon if that up-trend in the USD/JPY chart starts to reverse. Nicholas Santiago InTheMoneyStocks.com

City announces plans to install 175 new Divvy bike stations next year and wants to know where you would like to see ‘em.

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is coming under some selling pressure this morning. The stock is trading lower by 0.60 cents to $38.10 a share. Day trade…

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is coming under some selling pressure this morning. The stock is trading lower by 0.60 cents to $38.10 a share. Day traders should watch for intra-day support around the $37.90 level. This is an area where the stock could stage a minor intra-day bounce.

Nicholas Santiago

www.InTheMoneyStocks.com

Wake up, there is money to be made! This morning, both of our member services (theResearch Center and Intra Day Stock Chat) are seeing gains in their accounts. 

1st: The Research Center, which is where swing traders and those who are looking to hold positions for days to weeks reside. Research Center members were alerted to enter a currency trade utilizing an ETF, which could have also been traded through other FOREX instruments last week. Today, the first profit target was hit, profits earned, and now members have a breakeven stop in place while they sit back and wait for more gains.  2nd: The Intra Day Stock Chat, during the live trading session this morning, members were alerted to some great trades and earned great profits. Don’t hear it from us, take a look below at what some members posted to our Facebook fan page wall… Try both services for 7 free no obligation days right now, click here

Silver and gold have sold off recently but still hover quite a bit above their 2013 lows. Investors are wondering if the metal should be bought as the…

Silver and gold have sold off recently but still hover quite a bit above their 2013 lows. Investors are wondering if the metal should be bought as the Federal Reserve signals no stop to their bond buying program known as quantitative easing (QE). The charts probably give us the most unbiased view of where these metals are going. Neither chart looks healthy. Looking at the charts of the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEARCA:GLD) and the iShares Silver Trust (NYSEARCA:SLV) shows the ugly reality. Recently both charts have broken to the downside below major trend line support. The 2013 lows are all but a lock at this point and gold still has a chance over the next year to hit $1,000 an ounce. Gareth Soloway InTheMoneyStocks.com

Lazard hits a 52 week high

by Zacks Equity Research

November 19, 2013

Shares of Lazard Ltd. reached a new 52-week high, touching $41.66 at the second half of the trading session on Nov 18. However, the stock closed the session at $41.26, which reflects a solid year-to-date return of 34.7%.The trading volume for the session was 0.5 million shares. Despite the strong price appreciation, this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock has plenty of upside left, given its strong estimate revisions over the last 30 days and expected long-term earnings growth of 12.0%. Growth Drivers Impressive third-quarter 2013 results comprising a positive earnings surprise of 31.64%, top-line growth, a strong capital position and higher assets under management (AUM) were the primary driving factors for Lazard. On Oct 24, Lazard reported third-quarter 2013 adjusted earnings of 46 cents per share, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35 cents. Moreover, this compared favorably with 26 cents earned in the prior-year quarter. On a year-over-year basis, Lazard experienced 10.0% rise in both revenues and AUM, which acted as positives for the quarter. AUM growth resulted from market appreciation and rise in net inflows. Additionally, the company’s capital ratios depict its strong position. However, a 4.3% increase in expenses was the headwind for the quarter. Further, Lazard has delivered positive earnings surprises in 3 out of the last 4 quarters with an average beat of 35.95%. Estimate Revisions Show Potency Over the last 30 days, 3 out of 7 estimates for 2013 have been revised upward, lifting the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.7% to $1.77 per share. For 2014, 4 out of 7 estimates moved north, helping the Zacks Consensus Estimate advance 6.1% to $2.44 per share.

Obamacare Band-Aid: President to allow insurers to keep health plans an extra year

(Photo: Mandel Ngan / AFP - Getty Images)

After a furor over canceled health policies, president announces adjustment allowing insurers to offer the option to renew their 2013 plans in 2014 without change.

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This picture was intended to illustrate the “horrors” of suffrage, but damn if that doesn’t look like an awesome bar

Via Sam Sykes/Twitter

Last night, JP Morgan was about to roll out a Q&A with #AskJPM and things went wrong.. very wrong.

More highlights here: trib.in/1bqIdEN

Alioune and Moustapha Ndoye, two brothers from Senegal, decided to move back to their homecountry from the U.S. to start their company Xtreme Design and Engineering. It seeks to build innovative solutions for Africa’s growing hospitality industry.

After completing their engineering studies in...

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Greece must step up efforts to reach an agreement with international lenders on how to close a 2 billion euro ($2.68 billion) financing gap in its 2014 budget, the head of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Thursday.

Continued

http://finance.yahoo.com/video/ceo-stock-sales-153607273.html?format=embed&player_autoplay=false

Evidence CEOs Boast Good News & Dump Stock

Michael Santoli joins Lauren Lyster to discuss a study conducted by the Wall Street Journal which provides clear evidence that CEOs bull their stock before selling shares.

Santoli writes,

Longtime Barron’s columnist Alan Abelson used to remind investors that there are many perfectly good reasons for an executive to sell lots of stock. They might want to diversify, or pay for kids’ college tuition, or fund a divorce. But one of those reasons tends not to be that he or she expects the stock to go up a lot very soon afterward.

Read the rest here…

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) has run into a major double top from 2010. This is a classic swing trade short as a pull back is now expected. The s…

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) has run into a major double top from 2010. This is a classic swing trade short as a pull back is now expected. The stock has run from $1.95 to $33.25 in less than a year. This is an epic move of 1600%. A likely pull back target would be $26.00. Gareth Soloway InTheMoneyStocks.com