We sold our shares of bank holding company First Niagara Financial Group, Inc. (FNFG, Financial) as we lost confidence in company management due to a growing list of concerns, including poor third-quarter results and an announcement of a large goodwill writedown for a previous acquisition.
We eliminated our position in oil and gas exploration and production company Denbury Resources, Inc. (DNR, Financial) as a result of what we believe to be structural changes in the competitive dynamics of the global oil industry and subsequent changes to our estimates of intrinsic value. A combination of domestic oil production growth, an increase in the supply of oil from Libya, weakening demand trends in Europe and Asia, and OPEC’s unwillingness to reduce output to mitigate anticipated over-supply led to a significant decline in oil prices as well as a decline in the oil price outlook over the next few years.
