Alternative Investments
The global alternative investment space now sits at more than $9 trillion in global assets, and we’re just getting started. Roughly 40% of RIAs are using alternative investments. With the RIA space expanding and alternative investment demand rising among investors – a surge in data, news, and opinion will continue. This channel cuts through the noise to give you the most important actionable insight.
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SP Funds has expanded its suite of Sharia-compliant funds with the launch of The SP Funds S&P Global Technology ETF (SPTE) on the New York Stock Exchange. As North America’s largest family of Shariah-compliant exchange-traded funds (ETFs), SP Funds aims to provide investors access to cutting-edge technological advancements through SPTE.
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DailyAlts Playbook: Vaccine Hopes, Bitcoin Jolts, Softbank’s Woes, and Community Banking 101
THE DAILYALTS PLAYBOOK May 18, 2020 DailyAlts Playbook: Vaccine Hopes, Bitcoin Jolts, Softbank’s Woes, and Community Banking 101 PRIME OVERVIEW Good morning, With the Dow up 700 points on speculation around Moderna’s vaccine trial for COVID-19, I’ll start with a brief note on what’s happening at DailyAlts. Yesterday, we published the May Community Bank Investor…
DailyAlts Playbook: What Dalio is Buying, Davey Day Trader Global, and Restarting the Trade War
The Dow shed 200 points this morning, and while I’m usually not overcommitted to what the Dow is doing, I am looking at geopolitical tensions. We’re back into a barking match with China – this time because the White House has blamed its rival for the spread of COVID. That said, Chinese media are now arguing that if the U.S. blocks supplies of semiconductors to tech firm Huawei, China will launch its “unreliable entity list” and “restrict or investigate” companies like Apple, Cisco, and other tech firms.
DailyAlts Playbook: Back to Basics, Druckenmiller’s Warning, More Stimulus, and Activists Do What Activists Do…
I’m back in the saddle today after a two-day break that was sorely needed. The combination of an arthritic flare and stomach issue has put me back at around 50% to 60%.
Three days is when people start to worry, so I appreciate the emails.
I am very excited about the future and what we are building at DailyAlts.com.
Alternative Investments: Brookfield Asset Management Launches Retail Rescue Plan
Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM) is going into the retail rescue business.
Brookfield announced the launch of a Retail Revitalization Program to bring much-needed capital and assist with the recapitalization of retail companies with operations in the major markets in which Brookfield operates globally.
The retail investment program will focus on non-control investments in retail businesses to assist with their capital needs during the current disruptive economic environment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Brookfield is targeting $5 billion to be put toward this Program.
Artificial Intelligence: The AI That Powers Walmart’s Express Delivery
Walmart (NYSE: WMT) has an inventory of 160,000 items offered through its Express Delivery service that launched last month. The service is already on offer at 100 stores in the U.S. as a pilot test and will be extended to 2,000 stores this month. The system relies heavily on AI.
DailyAlts Playbook: Unemployment Woes, Economic Experiments, M&A Woes, and China… China… China.
THE DAILYALTS PLAYBOOK May 8, 2020 DailyAlts Playbook: Unemployment Woes, Economic Experiments, M&A Woes, and China… China… China. OPENING BELL Good morning, Good morning, There is one figure – and one figure only that matters today. And the U.S. Labor Department reported it before the bell. The agency said that the U.S. unemployment rate hit…
Alternative Investments: An Interview With Tobias Carlisle, Founder of Acquirers Funds
This week, Tim Melvin sat down with Tobias Carlisle, founder of The Acquirer’s Multiple®. Tobias Carlisle is best known as the author of the #1 new release in Amazon’s Business and Finance The Acquirer’s Multiple: How the Billionaire Contrarians of Deep Value Beat the Market.
Alternative Investments: An Interview with Jeffrey Chang of CBOE Vest.
Last week, Tim Melvin talked with Jeffrey Chang of CBOE Vest. His firm offers investment strategies called “defined outcome portfolios.”
These strategies help investors structure their portfolios to provide defined levels of growth, income, and risk.
DailyAlts Playbook: Coronavirus, Bond Bulls, an EU Slump, and Expectations for the Job Market
This morning, Johns Hopkins University announced that more than 3.65 million official cases of COVID-19 around the globe. States across the country will reopen their economies this week. Florida has opened restaurants with social distancing guidelines in place. California will permit clothing stores, flower shops, and bookstores to provide curbside pickup. And New York will let construction, manufacturing, and certain retail employees return to work. The official U.S. tally of coronavirus cases topped 1.2 million on Tuesday evening.
Community Banking – Seneca-Cayuga Bancorp To Become a Publicly Traded Stock
As part of the conversion and reorganization, the Bank would become a wholly-owned subsidiary of a new holding company. Shares of common stock of the Company held by persons other than the MHC (whose shares would be canceled) would be converted into shares of common stock of the new holding company pursuant to an exchange ratio generally intended to preserve the percentage ownership interests.
Alternative Investments: Carlyle Group Reports Loss in First Quarter
Like most of the other publicly traded private equity firms, the Carlyle Group (NYSE: CG) recorded an accounting loss for the first quarter.
The loss is a result of mark to mark accounting rules than none less than Warren Buffett has labeled ridiculous. Without the markdowns, Carlyle had Distributable Earnings of $175 million for Q1 2020 on a pre-tax basis or $0.48 per common share on a post-tax basis. Over the last 12 months, the alternative asset manager had distributable earnings of $721 million, or $1.93 per common share.
DailyAlts Playbook: Hedge Fund Returns, Elliott’s Litigation Finance, Uncle Carl, and Virtual Dinner with Hillary Clinton
The U.S. Treasury Department isn’t concerned about the Federal debt. Reports indicate that Steven Mnuchin and friends are looking to borrow a staggering $3 trillion during the second quarter. The government’s debt currently sits at $25 trillion with it on pace to run a deficit of $744 billion before factoring in the cost of COVID-19 on the U.S. economy. The U.S. borrowed $477 billion during Q1 and will also borrow another $677 billion during Q3, according to Treasury Department estimates. Just a reminder, gold is trading at $1,704 per ounce, while Bitcoin hovered around $8,900 on Tuesday morning.
Hedge Funds: Maniyar Trades With $1 Billion, and Other Fund Launches
Mayinar Capital Advisers has started trading with more than $1 billion under management. The fund, which spun out of Tudor Investment Corporation, launched Friday. It has already become a shining gem in a sea of coal for the industry. HFR reported recently that global AUM for hedge funds slumped under $3 trillion for the first time since 2016.
DailyAlts Playbook: Buffett Ditches Airlines, Wall Street Movies, Black Swans, and Stimulus Estimates.
This morning CNBC is covering the Berkshire Hathaway meeting the same way that ESPN covers the day after “The Last Dance” on ESPN. The big focus is on Buffett’s message “Nothing can basically stop America.” But my two key takeaways – as I assess Buffett’s career and philosophy – center on Berkshire’s decisions during March. My generation is one that looks at Buffett as a nice grandfather who likes to spend time with the family – not the ruthless businessman who was able to get General Electric to pay him 10% in 2008 on top of $3 billion in stock. It’s one of the reasons why people say “You mean the guy getting ice cream with his grandkids in HBO’s Too Big to Fail.”
Hedge Funds: The Einhorn-Musk Battle Takes a New Turn on Twitter
We might not have live sports right now. But we do have the constant jarring back and forth between Greenlight Capital and Tesla Inc. The former’s founder David Einhorn is one of the most prominent hedge fund managers shorting Elon Musk’s company. On Thursday – the day after Tesla’s earnings report – Einhorn questioned the financials of the electric vehicle manufacturer. Specifically, he wanted more information about the firm’s accounts receivable, costs, stalled factories, and the effects of international currency shifts.
Alternative Investments: A Conversation with Meb Faber of Cambria Investments
This week, we sat down with Meb Faber of Cambria Investments to discuss his investment approach and how it can help investors miss the massive sell-offs that occur in the stock market. We also discuss his tail risk strategy that uses Treasury Bonds and options to hedge equity portfolios in turbulent times. Meb Faber is the author of seven investment books and the host of The Meb Faber Show Podcast. Cambria Investments offers 11 different Exchange Traded Funds based on Meb’s investment philosophy.
DailyAlts Playbook: Icahn’s Victory Lap, An Opening Worth Celebrating, The Fed Talks, and the End of Mergers as We Know It.
THE DAILYALTS PLAYBOOK April 29, 2020 DailyAlts Playbook: Icahn’s Victory Lap, An Opening Worth Celebrating, The Fed Talks, and the End of Mergers as We Know It. PRIME OVERVIEW Good morning, There is a plan. No, not the Federal Reserve. No, not from the White House. Major League Baseball is considering a plan that would…
Alternative Investments: Warren, Ocasio-Cortez Move to Stop M&A Activity During COVID-19 Pandemic
Two prominent Democrats are moving to pass the Pandemic Anti-Monopoly Act, legislation to stop mergers while the U.S. deals with COVID-19. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Representative Alexandria Ocasio Cortez are pushing the bill. This new bill would place a moratorium on all mergers reported to the FTC. It would also stop any deals involving firms with more than $100 million or engaged in private equity.
DailyAlts Playbook: Gundlach Shorts, Technical Wizards, Germany’s Economy, PE Lobbying, and the Lakers Take a Loan…
The Federal Reserve will kick off its two-day meeting to discuss monetary policy in the wake of the history coronavirus outbreak. The Fed has taken extraordinary steps to stimulate the U.S. economy, including slashing interest rates to zero and buying junk bonds. The central bank will likely not announce any new plans until it has further information on the state of the American economy. The economy, which could face levels of unemployment we haven’t seen in more than 80 years, could take more than 18 months to recover. However, we could see some sectors fail to return to their pre-COVID strengths.
Alternative Investments: Institutions Spend At Least $3 Million in COVID Lobbying
CNBC examined a number of records tied to lobbying efforts. Reporters suggested that the firms were not attempting to obtain capital for the private equity industry. Instead, the firms aimed to ensure participation among portfolio companies in federal loan programs. Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman participated in a phone call with President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence. Other established investors taking place on that call included Dan Loeb of Third Point, Intercontinental Exchange’s Jeffrey Sprecher, and Paul Tudor Jones.
The DailyAlts Playbook: Incentives for Work, Crude Crushed, Monty Bennett Keeps the Money, and Cuomo’s Collective
We start this morning with Scott Minerd’s take on the V-shaped recovery, unintended consequences of fiscal and monetary policy, and the moral hazard facing our economy.
The CIO of Guggenheim Partners dropped his latest insights in the middle of the night, and they’re quite jarring. If you don’t know Minerd, be sure to read his analysis during the COVID crisis.
Private Equity: Northwestern Studies Industry’s Crisis Reaction
Filippo Mezzanotti, an Assistant Professor of Finance at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, has been studying how private equity fares in a crisis.
He examined data from nearly 500 PE-backed companies in the United Kingdom before and after the Great Recession. He and his research team found that d that PE-backed companies weathered the crisis better than other companies.
Alternative Investments: Washington State Investment Board Makes Allocations
The Washington State Investment Board has committed up to $1.9 billion in new infrastructure, private equity, and real estate investments. The board oversees pension as well as other state assets. They have had an outsized commitment to private investment for several years. Washington State Investment Board Allocations Washington only has about 33% of its portfolio…
The DailyAlts Playbook: Peloton Purchases, Elliott Fines in France, Negative $100 Oil, and Blackstone’s Real Estate Portfolio.
THE DAILYALTS PLAYBOOK April 23, 2020 The DailyAlts Playbook: Peloton Purchases, Elliott Fines in France, Negative $100 Oil, and Blackstone’s Real Estate Portfolio. PRIME OVERVIEW Good morning, It’s Christmas here in Estero, Florida. I’ve purchased either my greatest present to myself or the single dumbest one. Time will tell. The golf club on which I…