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Hey, Soros, Is Your Back Aching?
by Megan Barnett
Aug 15 2008
Aug 15 2008
The legendary investor says his back tells him when he's wrong. What is it saying about his big bets on Lehman and oil?
George Soros thinks the world may be in for a long recession and that housing prices will continue to fall more than most economists expect. He thinks a "superbubble" has been forming for 25 years—and it's currently collapsing.
But he thinks
Lehman Brothers is going places.
The notable philanthropist, political activist, and hedge fund investor who made a killing on smart currency bets in the 1990s, disclosed in a filing yesterday that his fund raised its stake in the troubled investment bank from 10,000 shares to 9.5 million shares during the second quarter.
The stake, worth about $188 million, comes to 1.4 percent of Lehman's outstanding shares.
Let's hope he's in it for the long haul, because the trade doesn't seem to be paying off so far. Lehman shares started the second quarter in the mid-$40s, falling to $19.81 by June 30.
They hit $12.40 on July 15 but have since bounced back a bit. They're up nearly 5 percent today to $16.95. Lehman has reportedly been searching for new sources of capital, including the possibility of selling its asset-management business, Neuberger Berman.
Soros made an even bigger bet on oil during the second quarter, which also hasn't panned out the way he'd hoped.
His fund took an $811 million stake in Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro. The gamble accounts for about 22 percent of the fund's equity portfolio, according to Bloomberg.
The stock has lost 28 percent since June 30, knocking about $235 million off the value of Soros' stake.
In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Soros said he's rich because he knows when he's wrong.
"And I would say that I basically have survived by recognizing my mistakes," he said. "I very often used to get backaches due to the fact that I was wrong. Whenever you are wrong, you have to fight or [take] flight. When [I] make the decision, the backache goes away."
Wonder how his back is feeling today?
But he thinks
Lehman Brothers is going places. The notable philanthropist, political activist, and hedge fund investor who made a killing on smart currency bets in the 1990s, disclosed in a filing yesterday that his fund raised its stake in the troubled investment bank from 10,000 shares to 9.5 million shares during the second quarter.
The stake, worth about $188 million, comes to 1.4 percent of Lehman's outstanding shares.
Let's hope he's in it for the long haul, because the trade doesn't seem to be paying off so far. Lehman shares started the second quarter in the mid-$40s, falling to $19.81 by June 30.
They hit $12.40 on July 15 but have since bounced back a bit. They're up nearly 5 percent today to $16.95. Lehman has reportedly been searching for new sources of capital, including the possibility of selling its asset-management business, Neuberger Berman.
Soros made an even bigger bet on oil during the second quarter, which also hasn't panned out the way he'd hoped.
His fund took an $811 million stake in Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro. The gamble accounts for about 22 percent of the fund's equity portfolio, according to Bloomberg.
The stock has lost 28 percent since June 30, knocking about $235 million off the value of Soros' stake.
In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Soros said he's rich because he knows when he's wrong.
"And I would say that I basically have survived by recognizing my mistakes," he said. "I very often used to get backaches due to the fact that I was wrong. Whenever you are wrong, you have to fight or [take] flight. When [I] make the decision, the backache goes away."
Wonder how his back is feeling today?
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