Market Commentary
Steve Cohen Does Some Rebalancing, Buys American Bonds and Banks
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Recently, Mr. Cohen has been rebalancing some of his investment portfolios with 5 trades made in late January. He made two sell trades, one worth between $15-50k of Western Asset Inflation-Linked Opportunities & Income Fund (WIW:US), and one valued up to $250k of the Putnam Ultra Short Duration Income Fund (PSDTX:US). From these trades, it would seem that the Congressman is expecting inflation to decrease - both of these holdings are directly linked to higher inflation or higher short-term rates (which would come from the Fed to battle higher inflation).
Apart from the two sell trades, Mr. Cohen invested in three relatively large other positions. Firstly, he invested between $250-500k into the First National Bank and Trust Company of Weatherford Texas; a financial institution. He then progressed by adding $100-250k into the Federated Hermes Government Obligations Fund (GOIXX:US), which “seeks current income consistent with stability of principal,” investing in US Treasury or government securities maturing in under 397 days. Lastly, Mr. Cohen bought between $250-500k of Schwab (Charles) Corp (SCHW:US), an American multinational financial services company.
From first glance, it would appear that the Congressman is lightening up on the inflation trade and getting into American bonds and banks, both of which have benefited from higher rates in the past year and are likely to see that on the bottom line. SCHW recently received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from analysts, and this could end up being a smart value purchase after the stock has dropped around 15% in the last year.
Congressman Steve Cohen is a forthright supporter of civil rights and social justice and is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives; serving since 2007. Mr. Cohen has been an integral part of numerous House Committees including the current Judiciary Committee and former Ethics Committee and has been an outspoken advocate for economic policies benefiting working class families.
