Fortress’s fall from grace

A little more than 10 years ago, I wrote about the first IPO of a US alternatives investment firm, called Fortress Investment Group. At the time, I was suspicious this would be a good deal for investors. It hasn’t been. Selling at the near-peak of the market in 2007, the stock is down 74% and despite a doubling of assets, net income is also lower than it was at the time of the IPO. But the Fortress guys are good salesmen: they’ve just managed to sell Fortress a second time– this time to Japanese telecommunications firm SoftBank for $3.3 billion.

Here’s my take on the Fortress saga, which just appeared in Institutional Investor magazine.

http://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/3688919/asset-management-equities/the-fall-of-fortress.html#.WObedFMrLBs