Hedge fund pair trade would end Sculptor standoff

Sculptor Capital Management

04/10/2023 18:29

(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions
expressed are his own.)
    By Jeffrey Goldfarb
       NEW YORK, Oct 4 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Boaz Weinstein
and pals again raised their bid for the $34 bln firm and are now
willing to risk clients decamping. Agreed buyer Rithm would be
better off just hiring boss Jimmy Levin. The rival suitors don’t
want him and could tear up any non-compete contract to sweeten
the deal.    
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    CONTEXT NEWS
    Saba Capital founder Boaz Weinstein and other hedge fund
managers sweetened their bid to buy Sculptor Capital Management
to $13 a share and dropped a requirement that a certain
proportion of one group of clients consent to the offer, the
Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 2, citing unnamed sources.
    Sculptor, which manages $34 billion, agreed in July to be
acquired by Rithm Capital for $11.15 per Class A share, or about
$640 million.
    Weinstein’s consortium also includes Pershing Square Capital
CEO Bill Ackman and Avenue Capital boss Marc Lasry. It had
previously raised its bid to $12.76 a share. Sculptor stock was
trading at $12.18 on the morning of Oct. 4.

 (Editing by John Foley and Sharon Lam)
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