Chapter 18

Daniel Loeb

Newfound Restraint

DANIEL LOEB OPENED Third Point in June 1995, and his fund returned 27 percent a year on average through July 2007—an eyepopping 16 percentage points higher than the Standard & Poor's 500 Index. Numbers like that certainly get Loeb noticed in the financial world, but what brings him notoriety are words like this: Irik Sevin is “one of the most dangerous and incompetent executives in America.” Loeb shared this opinion of Sevin, then chief executive officer of Star Gas Partners, a heating oil distributor in Stamford, Connecticut, in a letter to him that went on to offer this advice: “Do what you do best: Retreat to your waterfront mansion in the Hamptons, where you can play tennis and hobnob with your fellow ...

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