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Activist investor Robert Chapman has put an astounding 35% of his portfolio into Herbalife, which has of course recently been in the news because Bill Ackman has shorted the company, calling it a pyramid scheme.
Here is his explanation why:
HLF+by+Chapman+Capital+12!29!2012.Unlocked[1]
Here is CNBC discussing the situation:
Why Activist Investor Robert Chapman Has Put 35% of His Portfolio into Ackman Short Herbalife
Related links:
Tickers in the article:
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Stoptheamwaytoolscam - 4 months ago
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Sjzhao2003 - 4 months ago
Thanks for sharing!
The merit of the short vs. long case aside, it would be a shame if some well-known big time investors take advantage of their media-savvy and celebrity status for personal gains (NYT has a recent article on this as well). Shouldn't a focused value investor spend all of his/her valuable time on fundamental research? The fact that mere questions during conference calls by a "guru", not to mention the pretty heavy-handed 360-page ppt stack, can move the market so much tells a pretty sad story about the investing public.
I do agree with the author that SEC should require disclosure of short positions just as they do longs. That'd take a big step toward a more level playing field.
The merit of the short vs. long case aside, it would be a shame if some well-known big time investors take advantage of their media-savvy and celebrity status for personal gains (NYT has a recent article on this as well). Shouldn't a focused value investor spend all of his/her valuable time on fundamental research? The fact that mere questions during conference calls by a "guru", not to mention the pretty heavy-handed 360-page ppt stack, can move the market so much tells a pretty sad story about the investing public.
I do agree with the author that SEC should require disclosure of short positions just as they do longs. That'd take a big step toward a more level playing field.
Batbeer2 
- 4 months ago
- 4 months ago @CanadianValue
Thanks!
>> Shouldn't a focused value investor spend all of his/her valuable time on fundamental research?
An investor spending time on research is trying to outperform at the expense of someone:
- less informed
- less well capitalized (forced seller)
- less savvy
- more susceptible
- disinterested and/or
- disheartened
Last year, my stock picks outperformed most indexes.* Unless it was sheer luck, it was because I have an edge on the last three items on that list; not the first three. One could argue I preyed on the weak** so I'm in no position to judge Ackman.
What is your edge? You tell me that and I will tell you who you are taking money from.
IMHO, those who bailed out of Herbalife because of Ackman's presentation got precisely what they deserved.
*Check out the OSTK comments to see precisely how superior returns come at the expense of someone else's loss.
**I like to think I'm just trying to be nice. I'll buy from you when no one else will and sell when there's no one else selling.
Thanks!
>> Shouldn't a focused value investor spend all of his/her valuable time on fundamental research?
An investor spending time on research is trying to outperform at the expense of someone:
- less informed
- less well capitalized (forced seller)
- less savvy
- more susceptible
- disinterested and/or
- disheartened
Last year, my stock picks outperformed most indexes.* Unless it was sheer luck, it was because I have an edge on the last three items on that list; not the first three. One could argue I preyed on the weak** so I'm in no position to judge Ackman.
What is your edge? You tell me that and I will tell you who you are taking money from.
IMHO, those who bailed out of Herbalife because of Ackman's presentation got precisely what they deserved.
*Check out the OSTK comments to see precisely how superior returns come at the expense of someone else's loss.
**I like to think I'm just trying to be nice. I'll buy from you when no one else will and sell when there's no one else selling.
Paulwitt - 4 months ago
- 4 months ago ESI is down 19.3% today on heavy volume. The news is they have to pay a settlement to Sallie Mae of $46 million.
My comment:
high-frequency trading + short sellers = superb value investing. Thank you high-frequency traders + short sellers!
*I picked up a few shares today to add to the event-driven part of my portfolio
My comment:
high-frequency trading + short sellers = superb value investing. Thank you high-frequency traders + short sellers!
*I picked up a few shares today to add to the event-driven part of my portfolio
RSS
FTC may launch an investigation despite it being busy with MSFT, AAPL (Google sttled already)
The commodity/overpriced aspects of the HLF products escapes the article, entirely.
Wonder how relevant is the sample for the distributor's survey mentioned in there?
What about Belgium?