Paulson Trims Citi, BofA Stakes, Raises Other Financials -Filing

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NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Hedge-fund manager John Paulson trimmed holdings in
financial giants Bank of America Corp. (BAC) and Citigroup Inc. (C) last quarter
but added to positions in other financial stocks.


Paulson & Co. reported a new stake of 2 million shares in Blackrock Inc. (BLK)
plus bigger holdings in Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), SunTrust Banks Inc. (STI) and
Capital One Financial (COF) in its most recent filing with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.


The hedge-fund manager, who made his name betting against subprime mortgages
in 2007, turned bullish on bank stocks and gold in recent years, and the filing,
current as of Dec. 31, 2010, continued for the most part to reflect those views.
Paulson kept most of his gold holdings intact, the exception being fewer Kinross
Gold Corp. (KGC), down to 19.5 million, from 33.1 million three months earlier.


Paulson's most notable cuts to financial stocks were a slightly reduced
Citigroup stake of 413.5 million shares, down from 424 million. Bank of America
holdings also dropped to 123.9 million shares, from 137.8 million. Paulson also
holds 40 million Bank of America warrants.


Paulson reported a portfolio worth $29.3 billion as of Dec. 31, up from $22.9
billion three months earlier.


2010 was a banner year for Paulson, who personally netted more than $5 billion
in profits in what may be the single biggest haul in investing history, the Wall
Street Journal reported last month.


Other notable changes include more exposure to offshore drilling via a new
Transocean Ltd. (RIG) stake of 7.2 million shares, and an increase in Anadarko
Petroleum Corp. (APC) to 21.3 million shares, from 13.4 million.


Many investors who manage more than $100 million are required to disclose most
securities holdings within a month and a half of the end of a quarter. The
filings give the public a relatively fresh look at the portfolios of well-known
investors. The most recent deadline was Monday.



-By Brendan Conway, Dow Jones Newswires; (212) 416-2670; brendan.conway@
dowjones.com