Street Wise: Offshore hedger going domestic

Want more proof that long-short strategies are becoming all the rage among investors trying to find shelter from the falling equity markets? Mark Boucher, a veteran offshore hedge fund manager in San Francisco, is making his move into domestic hedge fund management with two funds that could begin trading this week.

Mr. Boucher, most noted for finishing 1998 with the world’s best five-year compounded rate of return of 26.6%, will be the lead portfolio manager of two new hedge funds sponsored by Longboat Global Advisors LLC in Bradenton, Fla.

Mr. Boucher is the head trader of Midas Fund Trust, which will affiliate with Longboat Global to manage the funds.

The hedge funds, Piranha Capital and Titan Global, have been gathering assets from wealthy investors since the beginning of the year.

According to Joseph Beasley, president of Longboat Global, the primary distinctions between the two funds begin with minimum-investment requirements. Piranha requires an investment of at least $250,000, and investors must have net worth of at least $1 million or a $2 million portfolio.

The minimum investment for the Titan fund is $100,000, and investors must either be worth at least $1 million or earn at least $200,000 a year.

Both funds will use leverage, though Mr. Beasley says it will be capped at 2-to-1.

In the true spirit of long-short investing, the funds will not be limited in terms of market cap, sector or asset class. The Titan fund, however, will not invest in futures.

To date, the Piranha fund has attracted $30 million, the Titan fund $10 million.

Mr. Beasley moved to the private-investment side of the business in December from the retail brokerage industry, where he worked for Baltimore-based Legg Mason Wood Walker Inc.

Jill goes uphill

Small-cap retail stocks, particularly the ones that target rich women between the ages of 35 and 55, don’t always fit the mold of solid and predictable performers. Then there is J. Jill Group Inc.

While larger and more-established retailers are closing stores and firing workers, J. Jill in Quincy, Mass., is finding an opportunity to expand.

According to a January filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company plans to double the number of stores it has in operation to almost 50 by the end of the year. Catalog and online enterprises support the brick-and-mortar presence.

The company, which has a market cap of $219 million, generated $250 million in revenues last year. Its stock, now trading at about $22, gained 276% in 2000 and is up 544% over the last 52 weeks and 40% so far this year.

The expansion plans will get some support from the recent sale of 1.7 million new shares.

J. Jill’s 2000 earnings, which will be announced this week, are expected to come in at $1.21 per share.

That compares with a loss of 7 cents a share in 1999. The company is expected to finish the current year with earnings of $1.50 per share.