The Morning Brief: Hedge Fund Favorite SunEdison Sinks, Again

SunEdison’s future is starting to look a lot cloudier by the day. The solar energy firm’s stock plummeted another 20 percent or so on Friday after it received a temporary restraining order preventing it from selling any assets. The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by shareholders of Latin America Power, which owns renewable energy projects in Chile and Peru and that SunEdison had agreed to acquire. The investors expect Latin America to win $150 million in an arbitration battle after SunEdison failed to close their merger deal. The order prohibits SunEdison and Terraform Power, an affiliate company, from “concealing, transferring or removing their assets, accounts or other property that may be subject to attachment,” according to the Wall Street Journal, citing court papers.

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Elliott Management boosted its stake in Cabela’s, which sells outdoor gear, to 11.2 percent. In late October the New York hedge fund firm urged the company to put itself up for sale, among other options. The stock Friday surged around 4 percent on the news of Elliott’s latest purchase.

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Bridgewater Associates boosted its huge stakes in its three largest equity holdings — all exchange-traded funds — in the fourth quarter. They now account for more than 76 percent of total U.S. equity assets at the Westport, Connecticut firm, up from 72 percent the previous quarter. Two of the funds accounting for nearly half of total equity assets track emerging markets, while the other fund tracks the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index. However, keep in mind that Bridgewater’s U.S. stock portfolio was only $7.7 billion at year-end. Altogether, the firm manages about $154 billion.

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