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Spirit Air looses $50M in bookings as hedge funds are under scrutiny over Didi’s stake

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Spirit Airlines, the U.S. ultra-economy carrier headquartered in Miramar, Florida which operates scheduled flights throughout the United States and in the Caribbean and Latin America announced on Monday that cancellation of more than 2,800 flights over an 11-day stretch this summer has cost about $50 million in lost revenue and increased spending.

The airline said the service meltdown that started in late July and a rise in COVID-19 cases are causing more last-minute cancellations and softer bookings.

The shares fell more than 2% in after-market trading.

Meanwhile, new filings have shown that many known hedge funds made big bets on Didi Global Inc, which went public in June just before Chinese regulators announced a probe of the ride-hailing company and its share price plummeted.

Singapore’s state fund Temasek bought 33 million American Depository Receipts (ADRs) in Didi, while T. Rowe Associates bought 10.2 million ADRs in the Chinese company, the filings through June 30 showed on Friday.

Tiger Global Management LLC and U.S.-based Adage Capital Partners also disclosed sizeable stakes in Didi. Billionaire George Soros’ fund bought 2.72 million of Didi ADRs.

Didi raised $4.4 billion in its U.S. initial public offering on June 30, selling 316.8 million ADRs. On July 2, China’s cyberspace regulator said it was probing the company, sending Didi’s stock tumbling. Its shares are down more than 40% from its debut.

During the quarter, Temasek also upped its stake in TAL Education Group and took a stake in New Oriental Education and Technology Group of 1.7 million ADRs, two other U.S.-listed Chinese companies hit by Beijing’s regulatory crackdown.

The “13F” filings that hedge funds are required to file quarterly with the Securities and Exchange Commission do not disclose the date purchases were made. They give a snapshot of fund managers’ stock holdings as of June 30.

That makes it unclear exactly when investors bought shares in Didi and whether they made or lost money. Some investors appeared to sour on other China stocks, shedding their holdings in Chinese tech giants during the quarter.

The filings provide more insight into some of the global investors who were potentially exposed to the company’s sudden loss in value.

Last week, China’s ride-hailing giant denied rumours about a possible management change following a Chinese media report stating that it may reshuffle its senior management team as a result of ongoing cybersecurity investigations.

“Didi is actively and fully cooperating with regulators’ cybersecurity probe, market rumours about management change at the company is not true,” Didi had said.

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