Hedge-Fund Mastermind Steve Cohen Just Bought These 4 Stocks

Hedge fund managers are known to risk some of their own cash alongside investor’s money to show they have “skin in the game.”

But big-name investors running what are known as family offices, or firms that manage investments for a particular family, take that idea to a whole new level.

Billionaire Steve Cohen is a newly-added member to the family office crowd, joining the likes of fellow billionaires George Soros and Carl Icahn.

#-ad_banner-#​Best known for his long-tenured hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors, Cohen has been running rings around the market for decades. SAC Capital has averaged 30% annual returns for 18 years, according to Bloomberg.com.

Cohen’s new gig, Point72, groups and invests more than $9 billion of his own assets together with assets from a handful of former SAC employees. And in the first half of 2014, the fund has already profited nearly $1 billion, according to The New York Times.

Although Point72 is a private firm, it is subject to certain SEC guidelines. One of the most insightful rules requires Cohen to report when the Point72 owns more than 5% of a publicly traded company.

Take a look at some of Cohen’s largest August investments.

Insmed, Inc. (NASD: INSM)

This stock stands out as a high-conviction pick. Why? Cohen has had to submit two SEC filings in the past few weeks for his continued buying. His stake amounted to 5.21% at the end of July, but a more recent filing on August 11 showed that he’s bumped his ownership up to 5.4%.

Over the trailing month, this biopharma stock has tumbled by more than 31%.  The stock slid dramatically after announcing that its flagship drug, Arikayce, will require two additional unexpected Phase 3 studies to gain approval from the FDA. Point72’s second purchase on August 11th was most likely an averaging down tactic to lessen the blow of the falling stock price.

C&J Energy Services, Inc. (NYSE: CJES)

On August 6th, Point72 disclosed a 5.4% stake in CJES, a major player in the controversial hydraulic fracturing space.  The company made waves at the end of June by agreeing to merge with Nabors Industries (NYSE: NBR) in a deal valued at nearly $3 billion.

The stock recently fell by 10% following its latest earnings announcement. However, CJES expects the merger to positively impact earnings during its first year of operations.

Kraton Performance Polymers (NYSE: KRA)

KRA can now count Cohen as a significant shareholder after purchasing a 5.1% stake in the company.

The producer of engineer polymers hasn’t found the same type of support from sell-side analysts, however. It has received two downgrades so far this summer from UBS and Credit Suisse.  That said, a consensus of analyst price targets comes in at $24.71 – that’s over 22% of upside from where the stock stands currently.

Kindred Healthcare (NYSE: KND)

Kindred is Cohen’s only new purchase that carries a dividend yield, coming in at 2.1%.  The operator of hospitals and nursing centers has taken a hefty spill in August after issuing lower guidance numbers.

Considering Cohen reported the purchase of KND shares on August 13, it appears that the manager thinks a rebound is ahead. Point72 increased its stake in the company to 5.1% following a 20% drop in stock price.

Risks to consider: Cohen’s methodologies have come under fire in the past, resulting in SAC Capital Advisor’s entering a guilty plea to insider trading and paying a $1.8 billion settlement. Although Cohen was never charged with any wrongdoing and aims to distance himself from the conviction, it is important to be cognizant of SAC’s past.

Action to take –> While the closing of SAC Capital Advisors was the end of an era, a new one took its place.  With more than two decades experience generating massive returns, Steve Cohen is still a force to be reckoned with among fund managers.  Glimpsing into his personal portfolio through SEC filings seems to be the clearest look we’ll have into his office’s inner workings.

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