Julian Robertson talks hedge funds, Apple + Google

Tiger Mgmt. founder, Julian Robertson chats with Bloomberg TV about the changing landscape of the hedge fund industry, the impact of the SEC's case against SAC Capital and Steve Cohen, and his thoughts on Apple and Google. 

Last week, I tweeted a link back to our post, "Insights from Hedge Fund Legend, Julian Robertson" for his thoughts on the hedge fund industry and the changes that size and increased competition have brought. This latest Bloomberg interview is a worthwhile update to this discussion.

Here are the clips (part one: JR on hedge funds, part two: Julian on Apple, Google) and a few quotes below. 

Julian Robertson on the Steve Cohen case and info flow to hedge funds: "I think hedge funds are generally extremely careful that they adhere to rules [concerning inside info]." Doesn't think it will impact the industry much. Tiger cub Nehal Chopra of Tiger Ratan Capital agrees.

On Steve Jobs and Apple: "I read the book on Steve Jobs and developed a tremendous amount of respect for his intellect, but I came to the conclusion that he really was a maverick person and really couldn't establish a great long-term entity [without his leadership]." Julian now prefers Google for their leadership structure long-term.

JR on hedge fund performance:  "One of the things that has affected performance [since the growth of the industry from 1980s] is the increase in size of hedge funds. It was so much easier to compete with bank trust depts, individual investors and mutual funds than with other hedge funds... the competition is tougher.". 

How Robertson selects his Tiger cubs: "That's sort of secret to us, but one aspect that got us interested in Nehal... was her competitiveness in tennis (Davis Cup caliber). She's a vicious competitor. I find that people who compete well in one thing compete well in others".

Twitter: Tom Keene asks Robertson, "are you on Twitter?". Robertson: "No, sir".

Related posts:

1. Insights from hedge fund legend, Julian Robertson.

2. Julian Robertson on hedge fund strategy and competition (Bloomberg).