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☆ Disney proxy battle is about a lot more than just two board seats
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

As for the newsletter, in today's big story, we're breaking down Disney's big proxy fight . Activist investor Nelson Peltz's proxy fight against Disney for two seats on the company's board comes to a head at its annual shareholder meeting today. The total amount spent between Disney and its rivals wrangling votes is estimated to be at least $70 million, a record for a proxy fight. The statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse at Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom, at Walt Disney World, in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. 3 things in businessWin McNamee/Getty Images; Chelsea Jia Feng/BIIn other newsAdvertisementWhat's happening todayThe Walt Disney Company's annual meeting will be held today.

Persons: —, Congrats, ya, Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz, Neilson Barnard, David A, Grogan, Nelson, Madeline Berg, BI's Peter Kafka, BI's Grace Eliza Goodwin, Walt Disney, Mickey Mouse, Joe Burbank, Rowe Price, Peltz's Trian, Neuberger Berman, Peltz, It's, Trian, they're, Stocks, Ray Dalio, it's, Quincy Krosby, Jeffrey Buchbinder, Alyssa Powell, Win McNamee, Chelsea Jia Feng, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, George Glover Organizations: Business, Service, National, Getty, Disney, Magic, Walt Disney World, Orlando Sentinel, Tribune, Wall, BlackRock, Peltz's Trian Partners, California Public Employees, Financial Times, DuPont, Fed, JPMorgan, Bridgewater Associates, Astera Labs, Arm Holdings, LPL Financial, Apple, Nvidia, BI, Walt Locations: —, Virginia, Lake Buena Vista , Florida, China, Haiti's, New York, London

Trian claims Disney's board has failed to generate sufficient returns in recent years as subscription streaming losses have mounted and traditional TV subscribers have declined. Early vote countBoth Disney and Trian received support from influential shareholders ahead of Wednesday's meeting. Roughly one-third of Disney's shareholders are retail shareholders, who historically vote in small numbers in annual meetings. The arrangement still raised questions about ValueAct's support for the company and whether Disney's board should have disclosed the prior relationship. WATCH: Disney board battle reaches final moments

Persons: Bob Iger, Mickey Mouse, Valerie Macon, Nelson Peltz, Jay Rasulo, They've, Maria Elena Lagomasino, Michael Froman, Peltz, Ike Perlmutter, Trian, Disney's, Iger, Bob Chapek, Patrick T, Adam Jeffery, Morgan Stanley, James Gorman, CNBC's, George Lucas, Laurene Powell Jobs, Lucas, Powell Jobs, Ken Squire, Rowe Price, Rowe, Mason Morfit's, ValueAct, Neuberger Berman, John Ferguson, Rasulo —, Glass Lewis, Iger's, Gorman, Jeremy Darroch, CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin, Heidi Gutman, Lagomasino, shouldn't, Blackwells, Rasulo, Jason Aintabi, John Foley, Jessica Schnell, Craig Hatkoff, Leah Solivan, ValueAct hasn't Organizations: AFP, Getty Images Disney, Voters, Trian Partners, Disney, PepsiCo, Marvel, SEC, Fallon, Bloomberg, Getty, CNBC Disney, CNBC, Star Wars, LucasArts, Pixar, BlackRock, Institutional, California Public Employees, Yacktman Asset Management, Saratoga Proxy, ISS, Sky, Trian Fund Management, NBCU, Bank, NBCUniversal, Green, Comcast Locations: Los Angeles, New York

☆ Disney's Bob Iger has won the long proxy battle against Nelson Peltz
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It's a victory for CEO Bob Iger against activist investor Nelson Peltz. AdvertisementDisney CEO Bob Iger has officially prevailed in his battle against activist investor Nelson Peltz. Disney had been expected to prevail in the Peltz proxy battle. AdvertisementThe battle, though, likely prompted Iger and the board to redouble its focus on the next Disney CEO. "Regardless of the outcome of today's vote, Trian will be watching this company's performance," Peltz said at the meeting before the decision.

Persons: Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz, —, Peltz, Jay Rosulo, Horacio Gutierrez, Disney's, Maria Elena Lagomasino —, Iger, Disney, Neuberger Berman, Trian, Gen Z, Alpha, Bob Chapek, Iger's, Jason Schloetzer Organizations: Disney, Service, Trian Partners, CNBC, California Public Employees, Epic Games, ESPN, Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business

☆ Disney's fight with Nelson Peltz will come to a head tomorrow. Here's where things stand.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A vote for the Disney's slate of board members will show support for Iger's performance as CEO since he returned to lead the company in November 2022. AdvertisementIt's the culmination of months of tussling between Disney and Peltz, who has been waging war against Disney's board since January last year. "When I sold Lucasfilm just over a decade ago, I was delighted to become a Disney shareholder because of my long-time admiration for its iconic brand and Bob Iger's leadership." And proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Service recommended shareholders vote for Peltz, though not Rasulo. Advertisement"We wish the very best to Bob, this management team, and the board," Peltz said on CNBC at the time.

Persons: —, Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz's Trian, that's, Peltz, Jay Rasulo —, Maria Elena Lagomasino, Michael Froman, Gen, Alpha, Jason Schloetzer, BlackRock, Rowe Price, Iger, Roy Disney's, Laurene Powell Jobs, George Lucas, Lucas, Bob Iger's, Donald Duck's, Ludwig Von Drake, Schloetzer, Trian, That's, Neuberger Berman, Ike Perlmutter, he'd Organizations: Service, Disney, Nelson Peltz's Trian Partners, Business, Century Fox, Epic Games, Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business, Vanguard, Street Journal, ValueAct Capital, Walt, Star Wars, Lucasfilm, New York Times, California Public Employees, CNBC, Netflix, ABC, ESPN, Marvel, Financial

☆ The battle over Disney’s future is about to be decided in a high stakes board vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Hadas Gold | Samantha Delouya | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Two competing slates of board seats are now up for a vote against Disney’s. Peltz has criticized Disney’s recent theatrical flops and said the company should reach “Netflix-like margins” with its Disney+ streaming service, among other issues. If Peltz is successful, he and Rasulo could gain up to two seats on the board, displacing Disney’s picks. More than 35% of Disney’s shares are held by these individuals, who could seriously sway the vote. The influential advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Service and Egan-Jones have also thrown their support behind Peltz for at least one seat on the board.

Persons: Nelson Peltz, Jay Rasulo, Peltz, Ike Perlmutter, Bob Iger, ” Barton Crockett, Disney, ” Trian, Rasulo, Iger, Bob Chapek, Peltz —, —, It’s, ” Peltz, Perlmutter, ”, “ They’ve, ’ ” Crockett, Anna, Elsa, Ludwig Von Drake, “ Disney, George Lucas, Jamie Dimon, Michael Eisner, Laurene Powell Jobs, Abigail E, they’ve, ” Jessica Reif Ehrlich, “ Nelson Peltz, Neuberger Berman, Egan, Jones, ” Crocket, CNN’s Liam Reilly, Krystal Hur Organizations: CNN, Disney, Magic Kingdom, Disney’s, Trian Fund Management, Blackwells, Marvel, Netflix, Rosenblatt Securities, ESPN, ABC, Google, JPMorgan Chase, BofA Securities, California, Service Locations: Trian

☆ Investors increase holdings of weight-loss drug makers’ shares in Q3 -filings
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Carolina Mandl | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Some big investors showed increased appetite for weight-loss drug makers in the third quarter, piling in to shares of Eli Lilly (LLY.N) and Novo Nordisk amid growing demand for their product, securities filings showed on Tuesday. Shares of Eli Lilly rose 14.5% in the third quarter and are up 67% this year. Some investors also bought more American Depositary Receipts of Novo Nordisk, including Fidelity Investments, Lazard Asset Management, T Rowe Price and Soros Fund. Novo Nordisk on Saturday presented data showing that the heart protective benefits of Wegovy are not solely due to weight loss, which could make it easier for healthcare insurance reimbursement in the future. Still, other investors trimmed their exposure to Eli Lilly, such as Wellington Management Group, California Public Employees Retirement System and Bridgewater Associates.

Persons: Eli Lilly, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro, JPMorgan Chase, Eli Lilly's, Rowe Price, Marshall Wace, LSEG, “ Stocks, ”, Vincent Aita, Carolina Mandl, Ira Iosebashvili, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Novo, JPMorgan, Vanguard, Sigma, Tiger Global Management, Coatue Management, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, Bank of America, Fidelity Investments, Lazard Asset Management, Soros Fund, Wellington Management Group, California, Bridgewater Associates, Marshall, Renaissance Technologies, Capital Management, Pfizer, Carolina, Thomson Locations: BlackRock, U.S, New York

☆ CalPERS to double climate investments, consider asset sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Ross Kerber | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Staff for the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) said the plan will boost returns for the $444 billion system, the largest in the U.S., plus cut in half its portfolio's "emissions intensity," a measure of emissions relative to output. Cashion said the new investments will be spread among companies that do things like mitigate emissions or make infrastructure more resilient to climate change, selected across different asset classes. Additional proposed legislation would require state funds to sell fossil fuel stocks, following systems in other states such as Maine. CalPERS has opposed the idea, saying it would do little to limit emissions and could compromise returns. But he said CalPERS will develop a process to evaluate whether a company is prepared for stronger climate regulations or shifts in consumer demand.

Persons: Peter Cashion, Cashion, CalPERS, Ross Kerber, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Staff, California Public Employees, Democratic, United Nations, Thomson Locations: U.S, California, Maine

☆ California pensions investment chief steps down less than 2 years into job
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Isla Binnie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nicole Musicco Chief Investment Officer, CalPERS, speaks at the 2023 Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., May 3, 2023. REUTERS/Mike Blake Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Sept 15 (Reuters) - The Chief Investment Officer of the largest U.S. state pension manager, the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), will step down on Sept. 29, CalPERS said in a statement on Friday. CalPERS said Musicco's deputy Dan Bienvenue will serve as interim chief investment officer and it will soon start a global search for her replacement. Musicco took the role overseeing a 400-strong investment office less than two years ago, in February 2022, according to CalPERS website. The post added that she has two children and a "large, multigenerational family" and has "been shuttling between Sacramento and her native Toronto to attend to pressing matters".

Persons: Nicole Musicco, Mike Blake, CalPERS, Dan Bienvenue, Musicco, I've, Isla Binnie, David Evans Organizations: Milken, Global Conference, REUTERS, California, Thomson Locations: Beverly Hills , California, U.S, Toronto, Canada, Sacramento

[1/2] A sign indicates the direction to the offices of Progress Software in Burlington, Massachusetts, U.S., July 26, 2023. But more than two months after the breach was first disclosed by Massachusetts-based Progress Software, the parade of victims has scarcely slowed. The tallies show that nearly 40 million people have been affected so far by the hack of Progress' MOVEit Transfer file management program. Now the digital extortionists involved, a group named "cl0p", have become increasingly aggressive about thrusting their data into the public domain. MOVEit is used by organizations to ship large amounts of often sensitive data: pension information, social security numbers, medical records, billing data and the like.

Persons: Brian Snyder, Marc Bleicher, cl0p, Huntress Security's John Hammond, Christopher Budd, Sophos, Eric Goldstein, Nathan Little, Emsisoft, Bert Kondruss, Rowe Price, Maximus, Alexander Urbelis, Crowell, Goldstein, didn't, Surefire's, Raphael Satter, Zeba Siddiqui, Chris Sanders, Grant McCool Organizations: Progress Software, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Reuters, Software, Insurance, of America, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Security Agency, Tetra Defense, WHO, Pension, California Public Employees, Moring, U.S ., Thomson Locations: Burlington , Massachusetts, U.S, WASHINGTON, American, Massachusetts, York, New York, Louisiana, California, New York City, Oregon

☆ Calpers Scrutinizes Blackstone Portfolio Practices Over Child Labor Fine
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Rod James | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

California Public Employees’ Retirement System ratcheted up its scrutiny of private-equity manager Blackstone in the wake of a child labor scandal at a company the firm owns. During a Tuesday investment committee meeting, Anton Orlich, managing investment director for private equity, said Calpers had demanded that representatives of Blackstone come to the pension’s Sacramento headquarters to discuss how the breach at Packers Sanitation Services happened.

Persons: Blackstone, Anton Orlich, Calpers Organizations: California Public, Packers Sanitation Services Locations: California, Sacramento

☆ Toyota shareholders make 15% the new win-win
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Antony Currie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Both Glass Lewis and ISS reckon there aren’t enough properly independent directors on the board, even though Toyota complies with the requirements laid down by the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Yet ISS held back from advising shareholders vote against them because it would risk “increasing management dominance of the board”. Toyota is a laggard on both and is now under pressure to get powerful investors back onside. CONTEXT NEWSMore than 15% of voting shareholders were against reappointing Chairman Akio Toyoda to Toyota Motor’s board at its annual meeting on June 14, the Japanese carmaker said on June 15. About 15% of shareholders who voted supported a resolution asking the company to issue an annual review of its climate lobbying activities.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Glass Lewis plumped, Toyoda, Masahiko Oshima, carmaker, Pete Sweeney, Thomas Shum Organizations: MELBOURNE, Reuters, Toyota, ISS, Tokyo Stock Exchange, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Nikkei, California Public, New York, New York City Comptroller, Twitter, Thomson Locations: New York City

☆ California pension fund looks to boost venture capital investments despite startup market turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

California's giant public pension fund is looking to increase its venture capital exposure in the coming months, despite a swoon in the startup market and lackluster performance of late by the fund's VC portfolio. Between 2000 and 2020, CalPERS underperformed the venture market, according to a PitchBook report, notching annual returns of 0.49%. In the last year, while CalPERS' PE portfolio returned −4.7%, CalPERS' venture investment performance came in at −24.8%. The pension fund's investments have skewed to the public market and to so-called "real assets," such as property. WATCH: Pension funds venture investments

Persons: Anton Orlich, Orlich, CalPERS Organizations: California Public Employees, National Venture Capital Association, Venture Locations: −

☆ Toyota gets activism, without the activists
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, June 5 (Reuters Breakingviews) - It’s one thing to be targeted by pushy activists looking for a quick return. It’s perhaps more embarrassing to receive the wholesale disapproval of American pension funds who are long-term stewards of capital. That’s the position the board of $200 billion carmaker Toyota (7203.T) finds itself in. The pair also favoured a resolution brought by Danish and Dutch pension funds urging Toyota to improve disclosure of its lobbying on climate change. Toyota insists its board adheres to the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s independence standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Katrina Hamlin, Pete Sweeney, Pranav Kiran Organizations: Reuters, Toyota, New York, California Public Employees, Danish, Tokyo Stock, Twitter, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, New York City, Una, Saudi, East

Toyota shares closed up 3.4%, outperforming the 1.2% gain in the Nikkei index (.N225). BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said in a statement the Toyota board was not adequately independent. The New York comptroller's office oversees a pension system with $243 billion in assets under management. Those funds held 6.7 million shares in Toyota Group companies, including Toyota Boshoku (3116.T) and Toyota Tsusho (8015.T) as of end March. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing, Leslie Adler Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nikkei, The, Toyota Group, Ford, General Motors, Lexus, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, Tokyo

One of them, Glass Lewis, recommended shareholders vote against re-electing Toyoda, citing what it said was his responsibility for the lack of a sufficiently independent board. Toyota on Friday did not immediately comment on the votes against the re-election of Toyoda. The New York comptroller's office oversees a pension system with $243 billion in assets under management. BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said the Toyota board was not adequately independent, in a statement explaining the vote by the funds it oversees. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Elon, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, The, New, Ford, General Motors, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, New York, Tokyo

One of them, Glass Lewis, recommended shareholders vote against re-electing Toyoda, citing what it said was his responsibility for the lack of a sufficiently independent board. CalPERS, which declined to comment, is the largest U.S. public pension fund with some $450 billion in assets under management. The New York City pension funds held 6.7 million shares in Toyota Group companies, including Toyota Boshoku (3116.T) and Toyota Tsusho (8015.T) as of end March. BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said the Toyota board was not adequately independent, in a statement explaining the vote by the funds it oversees. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, The, New, Toyota Group, Nikkei, Ford, General Motors, Lexus, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, Tokyo

☆ Investors who showed Q1 bets on Nvidia may have got boost as it joined $1 trillion club
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Carolina Mandl | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

They may not reflect current holdings, as fund managers may have added or sold shares since then. Many investors have piled in to the chipmaker that has quickly become one of the biggest winners of the AI boom. In the previous quarter, Nvidia was not part of GQG's portfolio. Among prominent investors who sold Nvidia's shares before its recent jump is ARK Invest. California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) sold roughly 1 million shares in Nvidia, but remained with about $1.2 billion in shares in the first quarter.

Persons: Cathie Wood, Carolina Mandl, Megan Davies, Matthew Lewis Organizations: YORK, Nvidia, GQG Partners, Fort, GQG Partners Inc, Nvidia Corp, Tiger Global Management, Wellington Management Group, Moore, ARK, California Public Employees, Carolina, Thomson Locations: U.S, Australia, Fort Lauderdale , Florida, India's, California, New York

By margins of at least 3-to-1, shareholders voted against three proposals that Berkshire disclose more about its climate-related risks or greenhouse gas emissions and efforts to address them, and its efforts to promote diversity. They also voted down by a nearly 10-to-1 margin a renewed call for an independent director to replace Buffett as chairman. The proponent of the independent chair proposal said it would leave Berkshire "less identified" with Buffett's "political activities." The votes were not surprising because Buffett owns special shares that give him a nearly 32% voting stake in Berkshire, making it difficult to adopt proposals he opposes. Berkshire shareholders also reelected the company's 15-person board.

☆ Warren Buffett set for 59th Berkshire Hathaway shareholder marathon as big questions loom
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett walks through the exhibit hall as shareholders gather to hear from the billionaire investor at Berkshire Hathaway Inc's annual shareholder meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S., May 4, 2019. Tens of thousands of people are flocking to Omaha, Nebraska this weekend for the extravaganza that Buffett, 92, calls "Woodstock for Capitalists." "Charlie is 99 and Warren turns 93 on Aug. 30," Lountzis added, "and you just don't know how many more you're going to have." Buffett and Munger are due to answer five hours of shareholder questions at the meeting. "We believe in constructive engagement and dialogue, whether it's Warren Buffett or another company," Frerichs said in an interview.

Companies Berkshire Hathaway Inc FollowOMAHA, Nebraska, May 6 (Reuters) - Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) shareholders on Saturday overwhelmingly rejected six proposals for environmental, social and governance changes at Warren Buffett's conglomerate, all of which the billionaire investor and his board opposed. By margins of at least 3-to-1, shareholders voted against three proposals that Berkshire disclose more about its climate-related risks or greenhouse gas emissions and efforts to address them, and its efforts to promote diversity. The proponent of the independent chair proposal said it would leave Berkshire "less identified" with Buffett's "political activities." The votes were not surprising because Buffett owns special shares that give him a nearly 32% voting stake in Berkshire, making it difficult to adopt proposals he opposes. Berkshire shareholders also reelected the company's 15-person board.

☆ Here are the 6 proposals Berkshire Hathaway investors will vote on this weekend - including removing Warren Buffett as chairman and requiring the company stay out of political discussions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

At the meeting, the company will vote on 6 shareholder proposals that include removing Warren Buffett as Chairman. Buffett recommends investors vote against all of the shareholder proposals. These are the six shareholder proposals Berkshire Hathaway investors are expected to vote on this weekend. Proposed by: National Legal and Policy CenterBerkshire Response: "Warren Buffett, Berkshire's CEO, currently has a 31.5% voting interest in Berkshire. The Board believes that as long as Mr. Buffett is Berkshire's CEO, he should continue as Board Chair and as Berkshire's CEO.

☆ Buffett set for 59th shareholder marathon as big questions loom
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett walks through the exhibit hall as shareholders gather to hear from the billionaire investor at Berkshire Hathaway Inc's annual shareholder meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S., May 4, 2019. Tens of thousands of people are flocking to Omaha, Nebraska this weekend for the extravaganza that Buffett, 92, calls "Woodstock for Capitalists." Buffett and Munger are due to answer five hours of shareholder questions at the meeting. "We believe in constructive engagement and dialogue, whether it's Warren Buffett or another company," Frerichs said in an interview. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in Omaha, Nebraska; Editing by Will Dunham and Megan DaviesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Exclusive: Blackstone set to raise as much as $10 billion for tactical opportunities
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Chibuike Oguh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Blackstone Inc (BX.N), the world's largest private equity firm, is set to raise as much as $10 billion for its tactical opportunities strategy, which gives it versatility to invest in a range of assets, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Blackstone has amassed about $5 billion for the Blackstone Tactical Opportunities Fund IV, which was initially aiming to raise only $4 billion, Reuters previously reported. Blackstone has raised three previous tactical opportunities funds that cumulatively collected about $16.4 billion from investors since the first of them was first launched in 2012. The $6.7 billion Blackstone Tactical Opportunities Fund II and the Tactical Opportunities Fund III, which raised $4.09 billion, had generated a net internal rate of return of 14.1% and 11.7%, respectively, as of June last year, according to the California Public Employees' Retirement System. Blackstone's tactical opportunities division has about $34 billion in assets under management.

NEW YORK, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Major U.S. pension fund CalPERS is seeking a meeting with rail operator Norfolk Southern (NSC.N) at which it plans to ask about the derailment of a train loaded with toxic chemicals earlier this month, a spokeswoman for the fund said on Tuesday. CalPERS, which stands for the California Public Employees' Retirement System, held $200.6 million worth of Norfolk Southern debt and equity as of the end of 2022, a CalPERS spokeswoman said. "We are in the process of requesting a meeting with Norfolk Southern," she said. Talks between the fund and companies are usually confidential, but CalPERS will update its membership "if anything pertinent comes from this discussion," the spokeswoman added. Norfolk Southern did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

☆ Returns from top venture firms NEA, DCM, and Khosla have been dismal over the past 2 decades, according to filings from California's largest pension fund, CalPERS
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

CalPERS is the US's largest public pension plan, managing the retirement accounts of 1.5 million California employees and retirees. Unlike many other financial institutions, VC funds are not required to show their return on investment in startups. The CalPERS fund's $75 million bet in 2001 on a venture fund managed by the Carlyle Group lost money. A $25 million investment in DCM's 2000 fund had a 1.9% IRR. Its $260 million investment in two Khosla Ventures funds in 2009 yielded an IRR of 11.8% for the early-to-midstage fund and 6.9% for the seed-stage fund.

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