Hedge Fund Manager Loeb Drops Buyout of $1.5B Re/insurer SiriusPoint

Hedge fund manager Dan Loeb said he’s no longer exploring an acquisition of specialist insurance underwriter SiriusPoint Ltd.

Loeb held exploratory discussions with Bermuda-based SiriusPoint about a potential deal to take the company private, but the parties weren’t able to reach consensus on the value of a transaction, according to a regulatory filing Friday.

The investor, who runs Third Point LLC, reiterated he has “total confidence” that SiriusPoint’s management team is taking the right steps to strengthen its balance sheet and enhance its credit ratings. He’s “fully supportive” of the company’s fixed income and hedging program, Loeb said in the filing.

SiriusPoint said in a statement that the special committee it formed to evaluate Loeb’s proposal was “unanimous in its belief” that its current strategy was the best way forward.

“The company has made significant progress during the last seven months to improve underwriting performance, reduce volatility and rebalance its investment portfolio towards high-quality fixed-income assets,” SiriusPoint said in the statement. “This was evidenced by its strong first quarter results.”

SiriusPoint, which underwrites insurance and reinsurance, fell 8.5% to $9.11 at 1:16 p.m. in New York trading Friday, giving it a market value of about $1.5 billion.

Loeb owns about 9.3% of SiriusPoint, which underwriters insurance and reinsurance, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. He said last month that he was exploring a bid for SiriusPoint as he felt it could best execute its turnaround strategy as a private company.