NEW YORK (Reuters) - David Tepper's hedge-fund firm Appaloosa bought nearly 1 million shares in Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc (NYSE:VRX) in the first three months of 2016, according to regulatory filings, but sold them during the first quarter.
Shares of Valeant jumped 2 percent after filings revealed Appaloosa's 945,000-share stake, but CNBC reported that the firm has already sold out of the position, citing a person familiar with the situation. A spokesman for Appaloosa declined to comment.
Despite a 10 percent reduction in its exposure, Appaloosa's largest stake continued to be placed in SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:SPY) Trust call options. Its 2.7 million SPY calls were valued at more than $555 million by the end of the quarter, and accounted for roughly 9.8 percent of its portfolio.
Hedge-fund SEC disclosures are backward-looking and come out 45 days after the end of each quarter. Still, the filings offer a glimpse into what hedge fund managers saw as investment opportunities.
The filings do not disclose short positions, or bets that a stock will fall. As a result, they do not always present a complete picture of a management firm's stock holdings.