2016 hedge fund contest

Norbert Schlenker · Post by **Norbert Schlenker** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:15 pm

A couple of inquiries by PM for a new edition of the hedge fund contest, so let's see how many of you are interested enough to enter for 2016. I'm going to stick pretty much with the 2015 rules because they seemed to work well.

As I'm late, your picking deadline is 9:30 EST on Monday, January 4, about 18 hours from now, so your research time is very limited.

Complete set of rules for 2016

Pick a fancy name for your hedge fund. Show some creativity. A panel of judges will choose the best. Winner of the name contest deemed to purchase long positions at 1% discount and sell short positions at 1% premium!
Before 9:30 am EST on 4 Jan 2016, in this thread, pick up to three stocks to go long and up to three to short. Equal dollar amounts are placed on each position, long or short.
Stock only. No bonds, no options, no funds.
No trades during the year, except that you can elect at any time during normal exchange business hours to "freeze" a price for any individual position at that day's closing price, i.e. liquidate any position. (Each position carries this option; you can choose to freeze different positions on different days.) Other than that, you're stuck with what you choose for the year.
If a stock is taken out in a merger or a bankruptcy during 2016, I will do my best to do the right thing. An all cash offer will result in a freeze at the takeout price. An all stock offer will result in the conversion of the position to the acquiring company's shares. Mixed cash and stock offers, you'll just have to trust me to saw things off fairly.
The universe from which to choose is the Russell 3000 as of 26 June 2015. If you pick shares not on this list and it's not caught and corrected before the deadline, your portfolio will be disqualified.
Starting prices are the 4 Jan 2016 close, ending prices will be the 30 Dec 2016 close. (Adjustments may be made to either in case of crazy spreads, at my sole discretion.)
Dividends won't count because ...
It's all automated to make it easy on Norbert.

Post your picks in this thread before 9:30 am EST tomorrow.

protagonist · Post by **protagonist** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:25 pm

Infidelity Contrabandista fund.
My picks:
Go long on EDMC. (Tanelorn's winning pick that lost 57% last year. Congrats, Tan...).
Go short on SALT, (Margin of Buffett shorted it last year and it gained 432%. Sorry, Marg...)

(I have no idea what EDMC or SALT stand for. Doesn't matter. If I win I will attract billions in new investor money and buy myself a boat. On second thought, what would I do with a boat? Maybe I will buy a couple of senators instead).

I was tempted to go long on HUEY and short on MRTN, but there is no HUEY. Pity.

If I lose big time I will use the same strategy but change my fund name next year. Maybe my username too.

nisiprius · Post by **nisiprius** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:35 pm

The Iolanthe Fund.
Long on Agilent. (A)
Short on Zillow Group. (Z)

jlegato · Post by **jlegato** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:37 pm

Fund:
Infinite Loop Holdings

Long
BOX
BGG
COR

Short
AMD
LOCK
CZR

cfs · Post by **cfs** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:45 pm

Name: The Lowest Rated Fund
----
Long
AAPL - Apple Inc.
MCD - McDonald's Corp.
V - Visa Inc.
---
Short
CAT - Caterpillar Inc.
CMG - Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.
SHLD - Sears Holdings Corp.

grok87 · Post by **grok87** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 3:57 pm

name: consternatio partners

longs
CRUS
AMD
PBF

shorts
WMC
TROX
TK

thanks

Post by **LadyGeek** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:01 pm

Fund: Ladies First

Long: FLWS - Flowers.com. It was first on the list.
Long: HIVE - Aerohive networks. I like bees.
Long: ZNGA - Zynga, a social video game services, was last on the list.

Short: SPOK - A communications company. I like Stark Trek, but Spock is past his prime.
Short: SNOW - Intrawest resorts. It's January - all rain and no snow.
Short: MSG - Madison Square Garden. I don't like NY sports teams and hope they tank.

resurgemus · Post by **resurgemus** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:02 pm

The Alferd Packer Friends for Dinner Fund:

Long:
XOM
IBM
WMT

Short:
OME
ISLE
MCD

veggivet · Post by **veggivet** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:12 pm

The Infidelity Fund, where we are loyal to no one but ourselves, regardless of how much you invest…

Long Alphabet (GOOGL)
Long Chesapeake Energy (CHK)
Short Amazon (AMZN)

I am editing my response because I saw that my fund's name is very similar to the first responder above. New name will be:

The Mirage Fund, where we show you only what we want you to see...

BigJohn · Post by **BigJohn** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:13 pm

I'm going stick with my longs and the name. Making some changes to the short positions.

Fund Name: ACE in the Hole

Long:
Apache (APA)
Chevron (CVX)
ExxonMobil (XOM)

Short:
Facebook (FB)
Netflix (NFLX)
Amazon (AMZN)

Flobes · Post by **Flobes** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:15 pm

People's Pecuniary Privet

Long:
AMZN
CMG
WFM

Short:
WMT
DPZ
KR

protagonist · Post by **protagonist** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:26 pm

LadyGeek wrote:Fund: Ladies First

Long: FLWS - Flowers.com. It was first on the list.
Long: HIVE - Aerohive networks. I like bees.
Long: ZNGA - Zynga, a social video game services, was last on the list.

Short: SPOK - A communications company. I like Stark Trek, but Spock is past his prime.
Short: SNOW - Intrawest resorts. It's January - all rain and no snow.
Short: MSG - Madison Square Garden. I don't like NY sports teams and hope they tank.

I admire your stock picking system.
My gf invited me to something at MSG last week. At first I thought she wanted to go out for Chinese food.

Spock is past his prime

He died last year. Pity. He was a nice man. It came out that he was disguising himself as an earthling named Nimoy all these years. Pasted down the ears. He had us all fooled.

dougger5 · Post by **dougger5** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:41 pm

Fund: iRocZ $$ NA CdBd B0XX Hdg H0gg$

Longs
--------
UTX - United Technologies
RGR - Sturm Ruger & Co.
ARRY - Array BioPharma Inc.

Shorts
--------
STMP - Stamps.com
PBI - Pitney Bowes
BEBE - BEBE Stores

Thanks Norbert

jdb · Post by **jdb** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:44 pm

Space Race Guys Don't Eat Burritos

Long: TSLA. Tesla Motors
Long: AMZN. Amazon
Short: CMG. Chipotle Mexican Grill

linenfort · Post by **linenfort** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:58 pm

Mixolydian* Stocks

Long:
IRMD / Iradimed Corporation
LMT / Lockheed Martin
---
Short:
UNXL / Unipixel

*sounds a bit like “mix a little in”

Thank you for continuing to run this. Fun!

renter · Post by **renter** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:01 pm

Cavein Holdings XIV Select-Gold LP
Long JCP jc penny (now everyone pls go buy those shirts and get the word out)
Short PZZA papa johns

TXJuice · Post by **TXJuice** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:02 pm

Thanks for the yacht Fund

Long
KR - Kroger
FEYE - FireEye
AAPL - Apple

Short
TWC - Time Warner Cable
DUK - Duke Energy
YHOO - Yahoo

EDIT: I had to change one of my long positions (NVGS - Navigator Holdings) because it is not in the Russell 3000.

zaboomafoozarg · Post by **zaboomafoozarg** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:02 pm

LadyGeek wrote:Short: SPOK - A communications company. I like Stark Trek, but Spock is past his prime.

One of the biggest losses in 2015

linenfort · Post by **linenfort** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:10 pm

zaboomafoozarg wrote:
LadyGeek wrote:Short: SPOK - A communications company. I like Stark Trek, but Spock is past his prime.
One of the biggest losses in 2015

Kirk is past his prime directive.

4nursebee · Post by **4nursebee** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:13 pm

Fund name is "Erck's sf9 Path"

Long holdings: NVAX

Please note that while this is a small fund, the basket really contains no eggs.

Explanation of my fund name last year: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comme_d%27habitude
And the music to go with it is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjAnmlEN8rI

Bracket · Post by **Bracket** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 6:20 pm

Diversified Smart Equity Premium Style Alternative to the Alternative Factor Fund (Class: First All the Way)

Long
Chipotle. CMG
Apple AAPL
Merck MRK

Short
Amazon AMZN
AMSURG AMS
Electronic Arts EA

Thanks

krill · Post by **krill** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 6:31 pm

Name: Jerkshire Cashaway

Long: BRK.B, TSLA, MU
Short: GDDY, FB, NPTN

I was very excited about shorting PayPal (I hate them), but PYPL was not in the provided Russell 3000 list of stocks

bowest · Post by **bowest** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:04 pm

Heads I Win, Tails you lose

Long
PX
CC
L

Short
WYNN
YUM
FWM

Grt2bOutdoors · Post by **Grt2bOutdoors** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:11 pm

The Ole' Crowing Rooster Fund

Longs: Exxon Mobil (XOM)
Bank of America Corporation (BAC)
LockheedMartin (LMT)

Shorts:
Ultra Petroleum (UPL)
California Resources (CRC)

Randolph · Post by **Randolph** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:22 pm

Mean Aversion Fund

Long: NM, ORN, KMI
Short: Q, GBRK, CCG

Park · Post by **Park** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:37 pm

EMH Hedge Fund

Long
NHTC
OME
MFLX

Short
EW
KMI
SSTK

k66 · Post by **k66** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:41 pm

Alas poor "Trixter" was not able elude the long reach of the 2015 market psychosis and will itself go under the knife to be dismembered for shark bait.

In its place this season, we bring you an intrepid new adventure involving strange, weird, and unbelievable tales of unequaled equity picks, plays, and pandemonium.

Name: The Wrecked Files
Motto: The Money is Out There

Long:
FOX
DAN
FBIZ

Short:
ALEX
SPR
SYNA

trueblueky · Post by **trueblueky** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:55 pm

Double the Profit, More 4 Me 4/40 Hedge Fund

Short Apple (AAPL)
Short Angies List (ANGI)
Short Alphabet (GOOGL)

Drastically reducing labor costs ensures success, so I didn't read past the A's.

Post by **triceratop** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:58 pm

Name: Handle Messiah's Investment Firm
Motto: "We have a firm grasp on market fundamentals in our area of specialty, and as we handle your money as your portfolio's savior we promise to deliver your returns net a 10% fee."
(edit: Alternate Motto: "If God trusts us with his cash, so should you")

Long: (Here our positions indicate our market analysts belief that we have found the true identity of Banksye.)
* BNK - Bankers Petroleum
* SE - Spectra Energy
* CJES - C & J Energy Services

Short: (Our short positions indicate a clear preference towards Greek management and a negative outlook on Nordic industries in this challenging global economy)
* ZEUS
* ATE
* THOR

jmg229 · Post by **jmg229** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:10 pm

Bravo PP Holdings:
Long:
PCYG
CMG
TSLA

Short:
CTL
UNH
CXP

boo-yah · Post by **boo-yah** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:16 pm

Name: Mart Throwing Donkeys

Long:
CRMT
SMRT
WMT

Short:
HE
HA

madpunster · Post by **madpunster** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:21 pm

Warren's Buffet Partnership

Longs: LCI HCI CALM
Shorts: AAPL CMG GILD

quantAndHold · Post by **quantAndHold** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:28 pm

Factor Factor Factor Value Fund

Long:
YHOO - Yahoo
VNCE - Vince Holdings
VDSI Vasco Data Systems

Short:
VRX - Valeant
SPXC - SPX Corp
SHLD - Sears Holdings

ge1 · Post by **ge1** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:09 pm

Greenwich Money Tree

Long: CVX, TWTR, XOM
Short: AMZN, NFLX, TSLA

slickwillbo · Post by **slickwillbo** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:24 pm

Yellen & Bernanke Unconstrained Bond Fund

Long:
ETE
XOM
AMGN

Short:
FB
TWTR
NBG

Maynard F. Speer · Post by **Maynard F. Speer** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:31 pm

The Jennifer Lawrence Swordfish Sanctuary Trust

Long
AAPL
AGN
DAL

Short
KMI
ESRX
QCOM

faulsk · Post by **faulsk** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:32 pm

2017orBust Fund

Long
REXX
GERN
BAC

Short
EGRX
BBY
DECK

camper · Post by **camper** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:36 pm

Winter Heat fund

Long:
RGR
SWHC
OLN

Short:
SKX
SAGE
GIMO

Tanelorn · Post by **Tanelorn** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:37 pm

protagonist wrote:Infidelity Contrabandista fund.
My picks:
Go long on EDMC. (Tanelorn's winning pick that lost 57% last year. Congrats, Tan...).
Go short on SALT, (Margin of Buffett shorted it last year and it gained 432%. Sorry, Marg...)

Contrarian indeed. I will not be betting on EDMC this year (2016 fund will be forthcoming), but if I had to pick, I would be short well before long. I think there's at least 25% downside from the recent $0.07 price. Some stocks revert to the mean, while others just slowly go to zero...

oldzey · Post by **oldzey** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:39 pm

0LDZEY'$ 0SAGE 0RANGE FUND ($0.00 FUND)

LONG
BBOX
BKS
BTU

SHORT
ANAC
SALT
SWHC

snowshoes · Post by **snowshoes** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:51 pm

Delivering Alpha Fund:

Long : AMD, CVX,
Short: WMT, NFLX, SHLD
Amended per your post, VRX(Valent-pharma)is not in the list Russel 3k // Thx for running the contest Norbert.

HighFive · Post by **HighFive** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:08 pm

Montrzuma's revenge

Long: LXU

VictoriaF · Post by **VictoriaF** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:20 pm

Fund name:
Smart Sigma: We ADD (Σ) and VARiate (σ)

Long:
ADBE - ADOBE SYSTEMS INC
DAL - DELTA AIR LINES INC
DOW - DOW CHEMICAL CO

Short:
V - VISA INC
AAPL - APPLE INC
RAD - RITE AID COR

Victoria

GoldenFinch · Post by **GoldenFinch** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:35 pm

Commonwealth of Buckaroo Dough Holdings

L O N G: SBUX URBN VMC

short: HCOM GPS

VictoriaF · Post by **VictoriaF** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:36 pm

cfs wrote:Long AAPL - Apple Inc.

TXJuice wrote:Long AAPL - Apple Inc.

Bracket wrote:Long AAPL - Apple Inc.

trueblueky wrote:Short AAPL - Apple Inc.

madpunster wrote:Short AAPL - Apple Inc.

Maynard F. Speer wrote:Long AAPL - Apple Inc.

VictoriaF wrote:Short AAPL - Apple Inc.

Mudpuppy wrote:Short AAPL - Apple Inc.

We have quite a few Apples here. It will make the contest more personal.

Victoria

EDIT: Mudpuppy added to the shorts

zaboomafoozarg · Post by **zaboomafoozarg** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 11:13 pm

VictoriaF wrote:We have quite a few Apples here. It will make the contest more personal.

I wonder... could my hedge fund be a 50/50 long/short of Apple?

Then close the position that looks like it is going to do worse as the year progresses.

Fund manager: William Tell, 1570-present.

FinanceGrad · Post by **FinanceGrad** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 11:16 pm

Name: 2016_Play_Money

Long
SAM Boston Beer
DVA DaVita
HIBB Hibbett

Short
FB Facebook
NTFX Netflix

MnD · Post by **MnD** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 11:18 pm

Name: Crude but K-mart sucks

Long: NOV - National Oilwell Varco, Inc.
Short: SHLD - Sears Holdings Corporation

DCA · Post by **DCA** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 11:22 pm

Fund Name
THE Spectacular Nacho Fund

Long
DFS
GGG
COST

Short
DPZ
FNGN
DDS

Ice-9 · Post by **Ice-9** » Sun Jan 03, 2016 11:33 pm

Aluminum Foil Partners

Long: CENX

Short: TTWO