Opening Bell: 12.23.15
Turing Pharma seeks CEO to replace Shkreli, plans job cuts (Reuters)
Turing Pharmaceuticals said on Tuesday it is seeking a new chief executive to replace Martin Shkreli, the price-gouging entrepreneur who is facing U.S. charges of securities fraud, and will cut jobs in a restructuring. The private Swiss-based company will also expand its board to include new, independent members, it added.
Lawyer busted in Shkreli ‘fraud’ headed to Cancun (NYP)
The lawyer who was busted for fraud last week along with pharmaceuticals villain Martin Shkreli will try to melt his legal worries in the Cancun sunshine next week, according to Brooklyn federal court papers. A judge approved Evan Greebel’s application for a Mexican sojourn along with his wife, kids, and in-laws as long he’s back in New York by January 3, court papers state...The feds claim that Greebel, who is out on $1 million bond, helped Shkreli illegally use funds from his former pharmaceutical company to cover debts stemming from tow failing hedge funds.
Bond Market Gauge Shows Investors Skeptical on Rate Increases (WSJ)
The index settled at 66.37 Monday, the lowest level since December 2014, according to data from Crédit Agricole. The index, which is released with a one-day lag, hit a two-month high of 79.57 last week, a day before the Fed announced its first interest-rate increase in nine years. A lower reading on the index means investors expect smaller fluctuations on bond prices. A higher reading means the opposite.
The Trouble With Sovereign-Wealth Funds (WSJ)
Now, some funds are shrinking or are being tapped by governments as oil revenues fall. That is forcing them to borrow or sell investments, potentially pressuring global markets just as other investors are pulling back from risk. Saudi Arabia’s central bank, which functions in some ways like a sovereign-wealth fund as it holds significant reserves that are invested widely, has sold billions in assets this year. Norway says it plans to tap its fund, the world’s largest, for the first time in 2016.
Cops Arrest Oklahoma Man Who Has "FUCK COPS" Tattooed On His Head (TSG)
Blackstone, Citadel, Lansdowne Gain as Rivals Falter in 2015 (Bloomberg)
Many of the big winners are firms that allocate money to multiple teams investing across a broad range of markets, with each group managing just a fraction of the total assets. This year’s biggest losers include managers with concentrated portfolios, who piled into the same equities -- Cheniere Energy Inc., Williams Cos., SunEdison Inc. and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. -- before they tumbled in the second half of the year.
Icahn Sweetens Pep Boys Offer With Vow to Top Bridgestone (Bloomberg)
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn sweetened his offer to acquire Pep Boys with a promise to top any bid from Bridgestone Corp. up to about $1.01 billion. Icahn’s new offer includes a provision that would automatically beat any Bridgestone bid by 10 cents a share, up to a maximum of $18.10 a share, Philadelphia-based Pep Boys said Wednesday in a statement. Pep Boys’ board has determined that Icahn’s offer is superior, giving Bridgestone until 5 p.m. Thursday to respond with a new proposal.
Driver in police chase revealed as 13-year-old taking 8-year-old sister on joyride (UPI)
The Macomb County Sheriff's Office said a deputy investigating a report of a black Nissan Altima driving erratically Saturday night spotted the vehicle stopped at a red light about 11:30 p.m. in Clinton Township. The deputy turned on his lights, and the car pulled over, but it sped off after a few seconds and made it a short distance before the driver lost control, and the car spun out across the grassy median and into the eastbound lanes of Metropolitan Parkway. Two children, identified as the 13-year-old driver and his 8-year-old sister, then got out of the vehicle and fled on foot.