Hedge Fund Picton Says Avoid Leveraged Firms With Trade Policy in Chaos
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
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US economic data is likely to worsen, causing hedge fund Picton Mahoney Asset Management to take a more defensive view and cut exposure to companies with too much debt risk, trading strategist Geoff Phipps said.
“It is pretty likely that we’re going to see downward GDP revisions in Canada and the US over the coming three or four months,” he said in an interview. Corporate credit spreads have widened as yields on US Treasuries have risen, creating “a very uncomfortable environment” for highly leveraged companies or those needing to refinance in the near future, said Phipps, who’s also a portfolio manager at the Toronto-based firm.