D.E. Shaw Boosts Positions in Global Cash Access (GCA) & LodgeNet Interactive (LNET)

Hedge fund firm D.E. Shaw & Co just filed numerous 13G's with the SEC. First, they've disclosed an increased stake in Global Cash Access (GCA). Due to portfolio activity on December 1st, D.E. Shaw shows a 5% ownership stake in GCA with 3,258,410 shares. This is a 105% increase in their position size since September 30th.

Second, D.E. Shaw also revealed a 5.5% ownership stake in LodgeNet Interactive (LNET) with 1,368,760 shares. This marks a 133% boost in their position size since the end of the third quarter.

In the past, we've also posted up various resources from this multi-faceted firm. Head to D.E. Shaw's insight on leverage to see the over $35 billion asset manager's take.

Per Google Finance, Global Cash Access is "a global provider of cash access and data intelligence services and solutions to the gaming industry. The Company’s services and solutions provide gaming establishment patrons access to cash through a variety of methods, including automated teller machine (ATM) cash withdrawals, credit card cash access transactions, point-of-sale (POS) debit card transactions, check verification and warranty services and money transfers."

LodgeNet Interactive is "a provider of interactive media and connectivity solutions to the hospitality industry in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Company also provides interactive television solutions in international markets through local or regional licensees."

Be sure to also scroll through our latest SEC filing coverage.

Hedge Fund D.E. Shaw Updates a Position

Hedge fund firm D.E. Shaw & Co recently filed a 13G with the SEC in regards to shares of Lear Corporation (LEA) due to activity on March 11th, 2010. In the filing, we see that they now have a 5.1% ownership stake in LEA with 2,202,816 aggregate shares owned. This share total includes warrants that are exercisable into 421,409 shares and preferred stock convertible into 70,238 shares.

This is an increase in their position because back on December 31st, 2009 they owned 1,310,101 shares. Over the past three months they've gained exposure to 892,715 more shares and as such have increased their position by 68.1%. D.E. Shaw was recently listed as one of the world's largest hedge funds and its founder David Shaw recently appeared on Forbes' billionaire list.

Taken from Google Finance, Lear is "a supplier of automotive seat systems and electrical power management systems with a global foot printing, including 35 countries."

For more research from this multifaceted firm, head to D.E. Shaw's insight on leverage. For more of the latest portfolio maneuvers from prominent investment managers, head to our hedge fund tracking series.

Hedge Fund D.E. Shaw & Co Boosts Priceline.com (PCLN) Stake

We've got two portfolio adjustments to cover regarding the holdings of quant focused D.E. Shaw & Co. Firstly, in a 13G filed with the SEC, David E. Shaw's hedge fund firm has disclosed a 5.1% ownership stake in Priceline.com (PCLN). They now own 2,096,755 shares and the filing was made due to activity on August 31st, 2009. They have boosted their stake in this name because as of June 30th, 2009 (their 13F filing), they owned 336,302 shares of common stock as well as 411,100 shares represented by Calls in options markets. Additionally, they also owned 202,000 shares worth of Puts on PCLN. So, in the last 3 months, they've certainly boosted their holdings and have acquired a sizable stake. This is interesting to see mainly because numerous other prominent hedge funds we track have entered large positions in Priceline.

Secondly, we see that D.E. Shaw & Co has filed a 13G on Spectrum Brands (SPEB) as well. The hedge fund now shows a 14% ownership stake with 4,201,138 shares. In addition to the 13G, they also filed a Form 4 to show that their current share tally was achieved by selling 25,000 shares at $23 per share and selling 40,000 shares at $22.40 per share, with both transactions taking place on the 3rd of September. While they sold a few shares, they still obviously have a large stake left. Shares of SPEB trade on the OTC Bulletin Board.

In terms of other recent notable activity, we saw back in June that D.E. Shaw filed a 13G on Medicis Pharma (MRX). While we haven't seen their performance figures the past few months, we did note that their Oculus fund was up 2.8% for the year as of the end of June. Their Composite fund was up 12.5% over the same timeframe. While D.E. Shaw & Co is a hedge fund, it is also a private equity firm and technology development shop all in one. Founded in 1988 by David E. Shaw, they manage over $33 billion and recently announced they would be opening an office in Dubai. Please note that they employ mainly quantitative and statistical arbitrage strategies. As such, tracking and cloning their portfolio is not necessarily recommended since we can't necessarily follow the rhyme or reason behind their portfolio maneuvers.

Shaw oversees strategic maneuvers at the firm, but no longer is active in the day to day operations. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University. Some notable former employees include Jeff Bezos (before founding Amazon.com) and Lawrence Summers, who left the firm to serve on President Obama’s economic team. In Alpha's hedge fund rankings, D.E. Shaw was ranked 6th in the world. We haven't covered their portfolio in its entirety yet, but stay tuned to our hedge fund portfolio tracking series for updates.

Taken from Google Finance, Priceline.com is "a global online travel company that offers its customers a range of travel services, including hotel rooms, car rentals, airline tickets, vacation packages, cruises and destination services. Internationally, the Company offer its customers hotel room reservations in over 75 countries and 27 languages."

Taken from their company website, Spectrum Brands includes brands such as 8 in 1, Cutter, Jungle Labs, Rayovac, Remington, Schultz, and more.

D.E. Shaw & Co Sells Owens Corning (OC) Shares (Per SEC Form 4 Filing)

Hedge fund firm D.E. Shaw & Co recently filed a Form 4 with the SEC that we wanted to update you on. D.E. Shaw & Co was selling Owens Corning (OC) shares on May 6th, 7th, and 8th. They sold at the prices of $18.4592, $19.7434, $16.3648, $17.6882, and $16.3806. The bulk of their sales were made at $18.xx and $16.xx. In total, Shaw sold 2,207,313 shares over those three days. As per the SEC filing, they now hold 10,887,829 shares after all their selling. You can also view D.E. Shaw's portfolio from Q4 2008 if you're curious as to what else they hold. As always, we'll continue to monitor their movements and will update their long equity portfolio in our hedge fund tracking series in a week or so.

D.E. Shaw & Co was founded in 1988 by David E. Shaw and manages around $33 billion as of December 1st 2008. They focus on intertwining technology and finance and are a hedge fund, private equity firm, and technology development shop all in one. In Alpha's hedge fund rankings, D.E. Shaw is ranked 6th in the world. Taken from their website, they invest “in a wide range of companies and financial instruments within both the major industrialized nations and a number of emerging markets. Its activities range from the deployment of investment strategies based on either mathematical models or human expertise to the acquisition of existing companies and the financing or development of new ones.”

Shaw himself oversees strategic maneuvers at the firm, but no longer is active in the day to day operations. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University. Shaw also was recently seen on Forbes' billionaire list, as well as the list for Top 25 highest paid hedge fund managers for 2008. They employ mainly quantitative strategies and do a lot of statistical arbitrage. As such, we need to add a disclaimer to this article. We're merely presenting what they've filed with the SEC. Since they are primarily a quant firm, we don't know the rhyme or reason behind their moves.

Some notable former employees include Jeff Bezos (before founding Amazon.com) and Lawrence Summers, who left the firm to serve on President Elect Obama’s economic team. Shaw has had a decent year thus far, seeing their Composite fund +0.8% for March and sitting at +5.59% year to date (through 3/31/09) as detailed in our March hedge fund performance numbers update. In terms of other activity, we touched on their SEC filing on Orient- Express Hotels (OEH) back in January (which is an ongoing saga). Lastly, for those of you potentially interested in working at such an outfit, check out some of Shaw's past interview questions.

Taken from Google Finance,

Owens Corning is "a producer of glass fiber reinforcements and other materials for composites and of residential and commercial building materials. The Company operates within two product categories: composites, which include the Composite Solutions segment and building materials, which includes its insulating systems, roofing and asphalt and other building materials and services reportable segments."

Hedge Fund D.E. Shaw & Co: 13F Filing Q4 2008

This is the 4th Quarter 2008 edition of our ongoing hedge fund portfolio tracking series. Before reading this update, make sure you check out the Hedge Fund 13F filings preface.

Next up is D.E. Shaw & Co. D.E. was founded in 1988 by David E. Shaw and manages around $33 billion as of December 1st 2008. They focus on intertwining technology and finance and are a hedge fund, private equity firm, and technology development shop all in one. They employ mainly quantitative strategies and do a lot of statistical arbitrage. Shaw oversees strategic maneuvers at the firm, but no longer is active in the day to day operations. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University. Shaw also was recently seen on Forbes' billionaire list, as well as the list for Top 25 highest paid hedge fund managers for 2008. Some notable former employees include Jeff Bezos (before founding Amazon.com) and Lawrence Summers, who left the firm to serve on President Elect Obama’s economic team. Shaw has had a decent year thus far, seeing their Composite fund +0.8% for March and sitting at +5.59% year to date (through 3/31/09) as detailed in our March hedge fund performance numbers update. In terms of somewhat recent activity, we had noted their activity in Orient- Express Hotels (OEH) back in January, in an ongoing saga.

In Alpha's hedge fund rankings, D.E. Shaw is ranked 6th in the world. Taken from their website, they invest “in a wide range of companies and financial instruments within both the major industrialized nations and a number of emerging markets. Its activities range from the deployment of investment strategies based on either mathematical models or human expertise to the acquisition of existing companies and the financing or development of new ones.” Lastly, for those of you potentially interested in working at such an outfit, check out some of their past interview questions.

Disclaimer: Do note that tracking DE Shaw through 13F filings is not beneficial due to the quant nature of their firm. We are tracking them because they are a popular, prominent fund with solid returns and many readers continually request it. While the majority of funds we cover are appropriate for tracking given their strategy and research methods, there is no way for us to know the exact rhyme or reason behind DE's positions. So, we are simply posting this up for fun. Use this information for entertainment purposes only.

The following were their long equity, note, and options holdings as of December 31st, 2008 as filed with the SEC. We have not detailed the changes to every single position in this update, but we have covered all the major moves. All holdings are common stock unless otherwise denoted.


Some New Positions (Brand new positions that they initiated in the last quarter):
Ventas (VTR), Apogent Tech (inactive), Essex Property Trust (ESS), US Bancorp (USB) Bond, Encana (ECA), Wendys/Arbys (WEN), Sybase (SY) Bond, Gilead (GILD) Bond, PSS World Medical (PSSI) Bond, Burlington Northern (BNI) Puts, Danaher (DHR), Medco Health (MHS), Best Buy (BBY) Bond, Occidental Petroleum (OXY) Puts, Dicks Sporting Goods (DKS) Bond, Kohls (KSS), Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF), Highwoods (HIW), Symantec (SYMN) Bond, Jones Lang Lasalle (JLL), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS-A), Senior Housing Properties (SNH), OReilly Automotive (ORLY), World Fuel Services (INT), L3 Communications (LLL), Ebay (EBAY) Puts, Dupont (DD) Puts, Kilroy Realty (KRC), NV Energy (NVE), & Hewitt Associates (HEW)


Some Increased Positions (A few positions they already owned but added shares to)
Abbott Laboratories (ABT): Increased by 467%
Bank of America (BAC) Calls: Increased by 110%
Apple (AAPL) Puts: Increased by 102%
Qualcomm (QCOM): Increased by 45%
Walmart (WMT): Increased by 28%
Laboratory Corp (LH) Bond: Increased by 20%
Abraxis Bioscience (ABII): Increased by 13%
Warner Chilcott (WCRX): Increased by 11%


Some Reduced Positions (Some positions they sold some shares of - note not all sales listed)
Exxon Mobil (XOM): Reduced by 65%
Equity Residential (EQR): Reduced by 60%
Burlington Northern (BNI): Reduced by 45%
Union Pacific (UNP): Reduced by 44%
Pfizer (PFE): Reduced by 33%
News Corp (NWS-A): Reduced by 31%
Cephalon (CEPH): Reduced by 26%
Coca Cola (KO): Reduced by 20%
Mastercard (MA): Reduced by 19%
Anadarko Petroleum (APC): Reduced by 14%


Removed Positions (Positions they sold out of completely)
Anheuser Busch (BUD), Merill Lynch (MER) Calls & Puts, Symantec (SYMC), Procter & Gamble (PG) Puts, CA (CA), DRS Tech (inactive), Imclone (IMCL), Prudential (PRU) Bond, Allied Waste (AW), SLM (SLM), Lehman Brothers (LEHPQ) 7.25% Preferred, Nabors (NBR) Note, Autozone (AZO), Invitrogen (IVGN), Mylan (MYL-PA), Anheuser Busch (BUD) Calls, Everest RE group (RE), Wrigley (inactive), Nationwide Health (NHP-PB), Barr Pharma (BRL), Coca Cola (KO) Puts, Hutchinson Tech (HTCH) Note, Best Buy (BBY), Brookfield Asset Management (BAM), Developers Diversified (DDR), Kimco (KIM), Grey Wolf (GW), & Sierra Pacific (SRP)


Top 15 Holdings (by % of portfolio)

1. Endo Pharma (ENDP): 1.25% of portfolio
2. Vertex Pharma (VRTX): 1.23% of portfolio
3. Warner Chilcott (WCRX): 1.19% of portfolio
4. Pfizer (PFE): 0.97% of portfolio
5. Goldman Sachs (GS) Calls: 0.9% of portfolio
6. Google (GOOG) Calls: 0.87% of portfolio
7. Mylan (MYL): 0.87% of portfolio
8. Owens Corning (OC): 0.83% of portfolio
9. Qualcomm (QCOM): 0.8% of portfolio
10. Walmart (WMT): 0.78% of portfolio
11. Mastercard (MA) Calls: 0.72% of portfolio
12. Anadarko Petroleum (APC): 0.67% of portfolio
13. AvalonBay Communities (AVB): 0.64% of portfolio
14. Davita (DVA): 0.6% of portfolio
15. Coca Cola (KO) Calls: 0.6% of portfolio

Again, please keep in mind that since Shaw is quant in nature, we aren't going to attempt to explain the rationale behind their holdings. Also note that they literally hold a ton of positions. After all, their top holding makes up ony 1.25% of their entire portfolio. They have numerous positions that only comprise of < href="http://www.marketfolly.com/2009/02/hedge-fund-portfolio-tracking-q4-2008.html">portfolio tracking series in which we're tracking 35+ prominent funds. We've already covered:

• Well known gurus such as: Carl Icahn, Warren Buffett, & George Soros
• 'Tiger Cub' portfolios: Stephen Mandel's Lone Pine Capital, Andreas Halvorsen's Viking Global, Lee Ainslie's Maverick Capital, Chase Coleman's Tiger Global, Chris Shumway's Shumway Capital Partners, Touradji Capital Management (Paul Touradji), and John Griffin's Blue Ridge Capital
• Global macro giants: Bruce Kovner's Caxton Associates, Louis Bacon's Moore Capital Management, Peter Thiel's Clarium Capital, & Paul Tudor Jones' Tudor Investment Corp
  
• Value & Activist players like: Bill Ackman's Pershing Square, Seth Klarman's Baupost Group, John Burbank's Passport Capital, Philip Falcone's Harbinger Capital Partners, Art Samberg's Pequot Capital, & David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital
• Concentrated portfolios like: Bret Barakett's Tremblant Capital, & Timothy Barakett's Atticus Capital
• Some solid names: Paulson & Co (John Paulson), Raj Rajaratnam's Galleon Group, Thomas Steyer's Farallon Capital Management, and Eric Mindich's Eton Park Capital
• Newer funds on the scene: James Pallotta's Raptor Capital Management, Anand Parekh's Alyeska Investment Group, Stanley Shopkorn's Hilltop Park Fund (no 13F yet) & David Stemerman's Conatus Capital
• Troubled funds: Jeffrey Gendell's Tontine Associates
• Quant & high frequency trading funds (purely for fun/entertainment): Jim Simons' Renaissance Technologies (Rentec), David Shaw's D.E. Shaw & Co, Steven Cohen's SAC Capital
  

We cover a new hedge fund each day and you can see the complete list of hedge fund portfolios here.

D.E. Shaw & Co (David E. Shaw): Hedge Fund Portfolio Tracking - 13F Filing Q3 2008

This is the 3rd Quarter 2008 edition of our ongoing hedge fund portfolio tracking series. Before reading this update, make sure you check out the preface to the series we're doing on Hedge Fund 13F filings here.

Next up is D.E. Shaw & Co. D.E. was founded in 1988 by David E. Shaw and manages around $33 billion as of December 1st 2008. They focus on intertwining technology and finance and are a hedge fund, private equity firm, and technology development shop all in one. They employ mainly quantitative strategies and do a lot of statistical arbitrage. Shaw oversees strategic maneuvers at the firm, but no longer is active in the day to day operations. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University. Some notable former employees include Jeff Bezos (before founding Amazon.com) and Lawrence Summers, who recently left the firm to serve on President Elect Obama’s economic team. In our November hedge fund performance numbers update, we noted that Shaw's Oculus fund was up around 10% for 2008 as of November, as they had profited from their global macro strategy. Their Composite fund, on the other hand, was -4% for 2008 at the time, having pursued multiple strategies. You can view a video about the firm's work culture here. In Alpha's latest hedge fund rankings, D.E. Shaw is ranked 6th in the world.

Taken from their website, they invest “in a wide range of companies and financial instruments within both the major industrialized nations and a number of emerging markets. Its activities range from the deployment of investment strategies based on either mathematical models or human expertise to the acquisition of existing companies and the financing or development of new ones.”

The following were their long equity, note, and options holdings as of September 30th, 2008 as filed with the SEC. All holdings are common stock unless otherwise denoted.


Some New Positions (Brand new positions that they initiated in the last quarter):
Ace (ACE)
Laboratory Corp (LH)
Vale (RIO)
Procter & Gamble (PG) Puts
Metlife (MEU)
National City (NCC)
IAC Interactive (IACI)
US Bancorp (USB) Calls
Lehman Brothers 7.25% Preferred (LEHPQ)
Blackrock (BLK)
Parker Hannifin (PH)
Maxtor (inactive) Note
Myriad Genetics (MYGN) Calls
ITT Educational (ESI)
Eastman Kodak (EK)
Canadian National Railway (CNI)
Prologis (PLD-PG) Note
Wrigley (WWY)
Tyson Foods (TSNFB)
Coca Cola (KO) Puts
Activision Blizzard (ATVI)
Prologis (PLD-PG) 2nd set of Notes
Aetna (AET)
Valeant Pharma (VRX)
Brookfield Asset Management (BAM)
Ticketmaster (TKTM)
Verisign (VRSN)
Amgen (AMGN) Puts
Fifth Third Bancorp (FITBP)


Some Increased Positions (A few positions they already owned but added shares to)
Freeport McMoran (FCX): Increased position by5,102%
Anadarko Petroleum (APC): Increased position by 100%
Baker Hughes (BHI): Increased position by 74%
Target (TGT): Increased position by 66.5%
Goldman Sachs (GS) Calls: Increased position by 47%
Warner Chilcott (WCRX): Increased position by 44%
Travelers Companies (TRV): Increased position by 40.5%
HCP (HCP): Increased position by 42%
Allstate (ALL): Increased position by 38%
News Corp (NWS-A): Increased position by 29.5%
Anheuser Busch (BUD): Increased position by 27%
Google (GOOG) Calls: Increased position by 24%
Vertex Pharma (VRTX): Increased position by 22.5%
Burlington Northern (BNI): Increased position by 22.5%


Some Reduced Positions (Some positions they sold some shares of - note not all sales listed)
United Parcel Service (UPS): Reduced position by 38.5%
Hudson City Bancorp (HCBK): Reduced position by 33%
Exxon Mobil (XOM): Reduced position by 30%
Pfizer (PFE): Reduced position by 25%
XTO Energy (XTO): Reduced position by 22%


Removed Positions (Positions they sold out of completely)
Clear Channel (CCU)
Navteq – inactive
App Pharma - inactive
IAC Interactive (IACI)
Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO)
Cliffs Resources (CLF) Calls
XM Satellite (XMSR)
Electronic Data System (EDS-PI)
Wendys (WEN)
Ventas (VTR)
American International Group (AIG-PA) Preferred
Kohls (KSS)
Public Storage (PSA)
Ingersoll Rand (IR)
Getty Images - inactive
Cleveland Cliffs (CLF) Puts
Archer Daniels Midland (ADM-PA) Preferred
Partnerre (PRE) Calls
Invesco (IVZ)
Elan (ELN)
Imclone (IMCL)
Williams Companies (WMB)
Proassurance (PRAZL)
Vivo Participacoes (VIV)
Blackrock (BLK)
Chevron (CVX) Puts
Rambus (RMBS)
Encana (ECA)
Ross Stores (ROST)


Top 20 Holdings (by % of portfolio)

1. Equity Residential (EQR): 0.98% of portfolio
2. Pfizer (PFE): 0.9% of portfolio
3. Goldman Sachs (GS) Calls: 0.88% of portfolio
4. HCP (HCP): 0.83% of portfolio
5. Union Pacific (UNP): 0.82% of portfolio
6. Vertex Pharma (VRTX): 0.81% of portfolio
7. Avalonbay Communities (AVB): 0.7% of portfolio
8. Exxon Mobil (XOM): 0.69% of portfolio
9. Owens Corning (OC): 0.69% of portfolio
10. Google (GOOG) Calls: 0.67% of portfolio
11. Warner Chilcott (WCRX): 0.67% of portfolio
12. Mylan (MYL): 0.62% of portfolio
13. United Parcel Service (UPS): 0.61% of portfolio
14. Huntsman (HUN): 0.6% of portfolio
15. Burlington Northern (BNI): 0.6% of portfolio
16. Anadarko Petroleum (APC): 0.59% of portfolio
17. Endo Pharma (ENDP): 0.58% of portfolio
18. Baker Hughes (BHI): 0.57% of portfolio
19. Hudson City (HCBK): 0.56% of portfolio
20. Mastercard (MA) Calls: 0.56% of portfolio


Assets from the collective long US equity, options, and note holdings were $56.4 billion last quarter and were $45.3 billion this quarter. We have not detailed the changes to every single position in this update, but we have covered all the major moves. Also, keep in mind that these filings only include long equity, notes, and options holdings. They do not reflect their cash, short portions, or holdings in other markets (currency, commodities, debt, foreign markets, private equity, etc). This is just one of many funds in our hedge fund portfolio tracking series in which we're tracking 35+ prominent funds. The other funds we've already covered include:

• Timothy Barakett's Atticus Capital
• Whitney Tilson's T2 Partners
• Peter Thiel's Clarium Capital
• Bill Ackman's Pershing Square
• Bret Barakett's Tremblant Capital
• John Paulson's Paulson & Co
• David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital
• Dan Loeb's Third Point
• Paul Tudor Jones' Tudor Investment Corp
• Louis Bacon's Moore Capital Management
• Bruce Kovner's Caxton Associates
• George Soros Soros Fund Management
• Chase Coleman's Tiger Global
• Stephen Mandel's Lone Pine Capital
• Lee Ainslie's Maverick Capital
• John Griffin's Blue Ridge Capital
• Andreas Halvorsen's Viking Global
• Chris Shumway's Shumway Capital Partners
• Touradji Capital (Paul Touradji)
• Eric Mindich's Eton Park Capital
• Barry Rosenstein's Jana Partners
• Seth Klarman's Baupost Group
• Art Samberg's Pequot Capital Management
• Ricky Sandler's Eminence Capital
• Thomas Steyer's Farallon Capital Management
• Harbinger Capital Partners (Philip Falcone)
• Jeffrey Gendell's Tontine Associates
• Jim Simons' Renaissance Technologies
• Ken Griffin's Citadel Investment Group
• Steven Cohen's SAC Capital
  

Overall, its been one of the worst years ever for hedge funds, as we noted in our November hedge fund performance number update. Thus, the recent moves they've made in their portfolios become all the more interesting given the way the market has played out.

More on D.E. Shaw & hedge funds:
- Hedge Fund manager interviews
- Hedge Fund investor letters
- Hedge Fund Rankings
- November hedge fund performance numbers
- October hedge fund performance numbers