Billionaires DUMPING STOCKS!!!

Billionaires DUMPING STOCKS!!!

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Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett's investment group Berkshire Hathaway has dumped its stake in British pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline.

Berkshire Hathaway's exit comes after the investment group sharply reduced its stake in the drug maker during the third quarter of the year, when it sold 77pc of its holding. It dissolved the remaining $17m stake in the following months, according to the company's fourth quarter filing, which reveals its positions as of December 31, 2013.

The sale is part of a wider move away from healthcare stocks for Mr Buffett. He has also been trimming his stake in French drug maker Sanofi and US pharma giant Johnson & Johnson in recent years, though he still holds positions in these two companies, according to its fourth quarter filing.

Mr Buffett also exited his stake in Dish Network in the final three months of the year, but bought up stock in cable giant Liberty Global. The so-called Sage of Omaha also started investing in Goldman Sachs.

Berkshire Hathaway also sharply increased its holding in General Electric, from fewer than 600,000 shares to more than 10m during the fourth quarter.

Source
Soros exits J.C.Penney, trims Herbalife, others follow

Soros Fund Management, one of the hedge fund industry's most closely watched investors, exited J.C. Penney and trimmed its stake in Herbalife late last year, marking a notable shift in course only months after buying into the companies.

The New York-based firm, which ranked as J.C. Penney's second biggest investor, sold 19.98 million shares during the last three months of 2013, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. It also cut its stake in Herbalife, where it was the fifth biggest investor.

J.C. Penney and Herbalife spent most of last year in the spotlight, with the retailer's stock price losing half its value as an ambitious overhaul fizzled and the nutrition and weight loss company surging 139 percent in the wake of a dramatic faceoff between some of the world's biggest investors.

At both companies, Soros' involvement, fueled by the firm's history of making a lot of money on savvy bets, boosted the share price and raised their credibility quotients, possibly even drawing in other hedge fund investors.

In the 40 years since 83-year old George Soros founded the firm, it has earned its investors $40 billion, including $5.5 billion last year, according to industry data. Even though the firm now invests only Soros' personal fortune, its investment decisions are still followed closely.


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George Soros
Soros exits J.C.Penney, trims Herbalife, others follow
BY SVEA HERBST-BAYLISS
NEW YORK Fri Feb 14, 2014 7:30pm EST
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George Soros speaks on stage at the Annual Freedom Award Benefit Event hosted by the International Rescue Committee at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York November 6, 2013.
CREDIT: REUTERS/ANDREW KELLY
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(Reuters) - Soros Fund Management, one of the hedge fund industry's most closely watched investors, exited J.C. Penney and trimmed its stake in Herbalife late last year, marking a notable shift in course only months after buying into the companies.

The New York-based firm, which ranked as J.C. Penney's second biggest investor, sold 19.98 million shares during the last three months of 2013, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. It also cut its stake in Herbalife, where it was the fifth biggest investor.

J.C. Penney and Herbalife spent most of last year in the spotlight, with the retailer's stock price losing half its value as an ambitious overhaul fizzled and the nutrition and weight loss company surging 139 percent in the wake of a dramatic faceoff between some of the world's biggest investors.

At both companies, Soros' involvement, fueled by the firm's history of making a lot of money on savvy bets, boosted the share price and raised their credibility quotients, possibly even drawing in other hedge fund investors.

In the 40 years since 83-year old George Soros founded the firm, it has earned its investors $40 billion, including $5.5 billion last year, according to industry data. Even though the firm now invests only Soros' personal fortune, its investment decisions are still followed closely.

So when Soros bought 17.4 million J.C. Penney shares in April, not long after Ron Johnson was ousted as chief executive officer, investors cheered and pushed the share price up.

But as the company's once-ambitious turnaround plans lost steam and a former CEO returned to the helm, its biggest investor, William Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management, abruptly exited in August. The share price kept tumbling and has lost 68 percent in the last 12 months.

While Soros was a steady J.C. Penney supporter through the end of the third quarter, the firm evidently changed its mind in the last months of 2013.

It had company in the form of other prominent managers who also exited. Richard Perry, whose Perry Corp owned 10 million shares, sold out, and Kyle Bass's Hayman Capital liquidated its 5.6 million shares. David Tepper's Appaloosa Management sold all of its 737,800 shares.

Fund managers who oversee more than $100 million are required by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to report their U.S. stock holdings 45 days after the end of the quarter. And while the information is often backward looking, it can shed light on certain trends.

J.C. Penney did not lose all support, however, with filings showing that Larry Robbins' Glenview Capital kept its stake steady at 12.3 million shares and Highfields Capital still owned 3.2 million shares at the end of the fourth quarter.

Soros' involvement was similarly critical at Herbalife, where the media quickly identified Soros and Carl Icahn, Herbalife's biggest backer with $16.9 million shares, as the industry's elder statesmen facing off against a younger rival, Ackman. The 47-year-old's Pershing Square Capital Management has a $1.16 billion short bet against Herbalife and is accusing the company of running an illegal pyramid scheme. The company denies that accusation.

Icahn kept his Herbalife holding steady, but Soros has now trimmed its stake to 3.2 million shares from 5 million shares.

The family foundation of Soros' former lieutenant, Stanley Druckenmiller, no longer listed Herbalife on its filing, after having had held 79,032 shares at the end of the third quarter.

Hayman's Bass, another closely followed manager, liquidated his firm's stake by selling 436,371 shares.

Other firms have take some money off the table. Tiger Consumer Management cut its position by 48 percent to 400,000 shares, while Adage Capital Partners cut its stake by 40 percent to 441,276 shares.

Since January, a U.S. lawmaker's calls for regulators to probe Herbalife's business practices has helped push its share price down 15 percent.

(Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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Carl Icahn
Billionaire Carl Icahn Dumps More Than Half His Netflix Stake

Posted By: Jordon [Send E-Mail]
Date: Saturday, 15-Feb-2014 04:39:52

In Response To: Billionaires Buffett and Soros Starting to Dump Stocks.. (Jordon)
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Billionaire investor Carl Icahn dumped more than half of his Netflix stake in the fourth quarter, according to a 13F securities filing.

In the quarter ended December 31, 2013, Icahn held 2,665,557 shares in Netflix after dumping 2,875,509 shares in Q4, data compiled by Bloomberg News shows.

He certainly exited the stock at a really nice profit.

Icahn first took a huge stake in Netflix back on November 19, 2012. At the time, he owned 4,291,066 shares, or a 9.98 percent stake. He bought the stock at $58 per share, Netflix said in its 8K filing with the SEC.

Netflix has been a massive win for Icahn. The stock has surged more 436% since then. Netflix currently trades at around $435 per share.