Part 2:

During the visit, scheduled for Saturday November 29 and Sunday November 30, Pope Francis will meet with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and participate in services associated with the Feast day of St. Andrew.  The two spiritual leaders also will sign a declaration on behalf of both Churches.

"More progress has been made towards reconciliation of the two Churches under the leadership of His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Francis than has been made in nearly a millennium, and this progress comes at a critical moment," Fr. Lemelson said.  "Christians are facing unprecedented persecution in our modern era, and a veritable attempt to eliminate their very existence just beyond the Turkish border, in the specter of this historic meeting, calling to mind the urgency to heal the wound that exists between East and West, which together represent roughly 1.5 billion people, or over 20 percent of the world's population," he added. 

Lemelson, who will serve the official Orthodox delegation, will be available for media comment on the issue of reconciliation between the two Churches, ongoing persecution of Christians globally and efforts The Lantern Foundation will be launching to support the Ecumenical Patriarch and Christians currently facing persecution in Iraq, Syria, Turkey and elsewhere.

An American-born Greek Orthodox priest and Founder and President of The Lantern Foundation, Fr. Lemelson also serves as Chief Investment Officer of Lemelson Capital, a private investment management firm.  Fr. Lemelson is available for interviews in the United States through Tuesday November 25 and in Constantinople from Wednesday November 25 through Monday December 1.

About The Lantern Foundation:

Founded in 2012 with the blessing of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, The Lantern Foundation is a U.S.-based 501c(3) private foundation whose mission is to provide financial support to religious and community service organizations, particularly those related to the Ecumenical Patriarchate.  To receive more information about The Lantern Foundation and sign up for the foundation's news and other alerts, visit the foundation's website: http://phanarion.org/

About Father Emmanuel Lemelson:

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Lemelson, an American-born Greek Orthodox priest, hedge fund manager and philanthropist, is attending officially the meeting between the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and Pope Francis, which will be held November 29 to November 30, 2014 in Constantinople, Turkey. 

Fr. Lemelson is the Chief Investment Officer of Lemelson Capital Management, a private investment firm that is the sole sponsor and general partner of The Amvona Fund, which has several times been named as the world's top performing hedge fund. 

In December 2012, with the blessing His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, he founded The Lantern Foundation, a U.S.-based private foundation designed to support Christian religious, community service and educational causes.  He has served as President of The Lantern Foundation since its inception.

Lemelson's theological work has centered on canonical issues in apostolic mission and ethics in relationship to commerce, finance and social justice.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theology and Religious Studies from Seattle University and a Master's of Divinity from Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology.

Lemelson's full interview with Benzinga can be heard here

In the Benzinga interview, Lemelson reiterated his conviction on the fund’s holdings in shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Geospace Technologies (NASDAQ: GEOS), Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC) and World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE).

On Apple, Lemelson said the fund continues to maintain a “substantial large stake, roughly $20 million” investment in Apple. He believes Apple is performing well across its multiple business lines. “They are hitting the ball out of the park in every business they are in,” Lemelson contends.

Lemelson also addressed his optimism for Geospace Technologies, a United States-based company that designs and manufactures instruments and equipment used in global oil and gas extraction. The Amvona Fund first announced its long position in Geospace Technologies (comprising a two percent ownership of the company’s outstanding shares) four weeks ago, on October 20. Lemelson believes Geospace is a “great company with a very solid management team” that stands to benefit from being a part of a vast $23 trillion that will be spent for fossil fuel extraction, transport and oil refining through 2035. At its current price, Lemelson estimates Geospace is as much as “sixty or seventy percent undervalued.”

In his Benzinga interview, Lemelson also addressed The Amvona Fund’s long position in World Wrestling Entertainment, arguing that WWE’s intrinsic value would be far greater if the company’s management was in “the right hands.” Lemelson reiterated his prior call for WWE to overhaul its executive management team or pursue a sale of the company so this value can be unlocked. He said WWE benefits from having no real competitor in its segment, “has strong intangibles” and represents a “sound long-term investment.”

Lemelson also discussed his non-profit organization, The Lantern Foundation, founded in 2012 to provide financial support to religious and community service organizations, particularly those related to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

To watch the interview click here.

Geospace Technologies is a global leader in engineering and manufacturing in the oil and gas sector of the energy industry.  “Shares of Geospace Technologies have continued to be dramatically undervalued, trading slightly above tangible book value recently, which the company has managed to grow at an impressive pace of nearly 23 percent per year over the last five years,” said Emmanuel Lemelson, Chief Investment Officer of Lemelson Capital Management. 

Geospace Technologies closed at $28.01 per share on Friday.  Lemelson Capital Management today placed fair value for the shares above $78.

Lemelson Capital Management’s Amvona Fund, managed by Emmanuel Lemelson, has garnered substantial attention for several of its high-profile long and short activist positions in publicly-traded stocks.  The fund has a widely-publicized short position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: LGND).  It also currently has high-profile long positions in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Kulicke & Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC) and World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE).

Since its 2012 inception, Lemelson Capital’s Amvona Fund has been named repeatedly as one of the world’s top-performing hedge funds.  BarclayHedge, a global leader in fund performance ranking and assessment, ranked The Amvona Fund as the world’s top-performing “long bias” fund for August 2014.[1]  On several occasions over the past two years, The Amvona Fund also has been ranked by Barron’s as the top-performing hedge fund in the world.  Since September 2012, The Amvona Fund has returned 257 percent gross and 160 percent net through August 31, 2014.

Disclosure:  The Amvona Fund, LP is long shares of AEO, AAPL, GEOS, KLIC and WWE and short LGND for its clients.

In the interview, Fr. Emmanuel commented on the firm's current long position in shares of World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE), Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC) and American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) and the firm's short position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: LGND). He also addressed the recent correction in equity markets, the existing and potential impact of the ongoing Ebola virus on the markets, and Lemelson Capital's long position in Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) including investor Carl Icahn's recent letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

Among Lemelson's comments on the Benzinga show:

On Lemelson Capital's short position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Lemelson strongly criticized Ligand's use of non-GAAP accounting methodologies and the cost of Ligand's recent debt offering "It's about 18 ½ percent, the cost of their debt," Lemelson said. Prior Lemelson Capital reports on Ligand have concluded that Ligand shares have "no intrinsic value".

On Lemelson Capital's long position in Apple, Lemelson said he was very optimistic about Apple stock's future. "Revenues have increased and it appears profits are certainly going to increase," he said.

On Kulicke & Soffa, Lemelson said he maintained great confidence about the stock's future, especially in light of the company's recent decision to heed Lemelson Capital's recommendation that it launch a share repurchase program with its large cash holdings. "If you have to mortgage your grandmother's house to buy these shares, do it," he added.

On the market generally, Lemelson said the recent market sell-off "was not totally unexpected…this pull back is a good thing, it's healthy," he said.

To watch the interview click here.

For August 2014, BarclayHedge reports, The Amvona Fund returned 9.7 percent net of all fees and expenses, making it the best-performing long biased fund in the world for the period.  Among the top ten funds ranked in this category, The Amvona Fund also ranked as the top-performing on a year-to-date basis, returning 35.14 percent net of all fees and expenses through August 31, 2014.

Managed by Emmanuel Lemelson, The Amvona Fund has garnered substantial attention in 2014 for several of its long and short activist positions in publicly-traded stocks. 

One of The Amvona Fund’s best-performing investments year-to-date has been a short position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: LGND), a biopharmaceutical company, which the fund first announced on June 16, 2014.  Lemelson Capital Management, the sole sponsor and general partner of The Amvona Fund, released a report (and has since reiterated this position) that Ligand has no intrinsic value and faces a substantial going concern and bankruptcy risk.  The Amvona Fund continues to maintain a substantial short position in Ligand.

                The Amvona Fund’s leading performance in August 2014 was driven by several long positions that the fund continues to hold, including American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Kulicke & Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC) and World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE).

The Amvona Fund announced a short position in World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE) on March 17, 2014.  Two months later, on May 16, 2014, the fund announced that it had covered its short position in WWE and adopted a long position in the stock, which it continues to hold.  WWE stock appreciated 11.59 percent in August 2014.

On April 22, 2014, the fund announced a long position in Kulicke & Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC), a global leader in the design and manufacture of semiconductor and light-emitting diodes (LED) equipment, which it continues to hold.  Kulicke & Soffa stock appreciated 6.06 percent in August 2014.

Also driving The Amvona Fund’s top-ranking August 2014 performance was its long position in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO), which the fund acquired between August 2013 and May 2014 at an average purchase price of $11.66 per share.  American Eagle stock appreciated 35.91 percent in August 2014 alone.  The Amvona Fund’s long position in Apple Inc., which grew 6.63 percent in August, also contributed to its leading performance.

                BarclayHedge’s ranking of The Amvona Fund as the top-performing in its category for August 2014 follows multiple other recognitions of the fund’s top-ranking performance.  On three occasions since The Amvona Fund’s September 2012 inception, Barron’s, one of the world’s leading financial media outlets, has ranked The Amvona Fund among the world’s top-performing hedge funds[2].  In July and October 2013, Barron’s ranked The Amvona Fund the world’s singular top-performing hedge fund.  In April 2014, it was ranked the world’s second best-performing hedge fund by Barron’s.  The data and financial intelligence firm Preqin has named[3] The Amvona Fund one of the world’s top-performing funds for 2013.  

Disclosure:  Lemelson Capital is long shares of AAPL, AEO, KLIC and WWE and short shares of LGND for its clients.

About Lemelson Capital Management

Lemelson Capital Management, LLC is a private investment management firm focused on deep value and special situation investments.  The firm's flagship fund, The Amvona Fund, has been named repeatedly one of the world's top performing hedge funds.  For more information, see: http://www.lemelsoncapital.com.

 In the interview, Fr. Emmanuel, after some initial comments on the firms current long position in shares of WWE is asked in depth and pointed questions (around the 7 minute mark) about Lemelson's recent activist role in shares of Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) including the recent announcement that Kulicke and Soffa would heed Lemelson's call for a substantial share repurchase.

Also in the interview, Lemelson reaffirmed the firm's short stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) that was first published on Seeking Alpha on June 16th as well as the firm's significant long position in shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL).

In the two years since The Amvona Fund’s inception, the fund has been repeatedly named one of the world’s top performing hedge funds by both financial research firms and media.  In July 2013 and again in October 2013, The Amvona Fund was named the world’s single best performing hedge fund by Barron’s and the world’s second best-performing hedge fund for the entire year[1].  In April 2014, Barron’s again named The Amvona Fund among the world’s best performing hedge funds.   In February 2014, the fund was named among top performing event driven fund’s in the world by global research and consultancy firm Preqin and In July 2014, the fund ranked among the top five best performing hedge funds by BarclayHedge[2].

“The strict application of a deep margin of safety that has been the hallmark of each commitment has led to better than average results.  It is only with fidelity to this strict ‘value imperative’ that outcomes can be consistently above average over the long term, particularly given the great risks associated with a richly valued market,” said Emmanuel Lemelson, Chief Investment Officer of Lemelson Capital Management. 

The fund’s recent performance was driven in part by its significant short position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: LGND), a previous short position in World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE), and its current long positions in Kulicke & Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC), Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE) amongst others.

Disclosure:  Lemelson Capital is long shares of AAPL, KLIC, WWE and short shares of LGND for its clients.

About Lemelson Capital Management:

Lemelson Capital Management, LLC is a private investment management firm focused on deep value and special situation investments.  The firm’s flagship fund, The Amvona Fund, has been named repeatedly as one of the world’s top performing hedge funds.  For more information, see:  http://www.lemelsoncapital.com.

Lemelson Capital’s original April 23 letter to Kulicke and Soffa management can be found here.

“The Board and management of Kulicke and Soffa should be commended for acting in the best interest of shareholders and initiating the tender offer announced today by the company,” said Lemelson Capital Management Chief Investment Officer Emmanuel Lemelson. “The exchange between Lemelson Capital and Kulicke and Soffa management has been productive and we’re delighted that Mr. Guilmart and the Kulicke and Soffa Board have decided to act on Lemelson Capital’s recommendation for a large share repurchase program. Kulicke and Soffa is a stable, highly cash generative business that continues to be radically undervalued, and there is no better place for the company to allocate its capital than to the repurchase its shares,” he said.

Lemelson Capital Management first announced its substantial long position in Kulicke and Soffa Industries on April 23, 2014. Lemelson Capital’s stake in the company has appreciated some 27.2 percent through market close on August 26, 2014.

Disclosure: Lemelson Capital is currently long shares of KLIC for its clients.

About Lemelson Capital Management:

Lemelson Capital Management, LLC is a private investment management firm focused on deep value and special situation investments. The firm's flagship fund, The Amvona Fund, has been named repeatedly one of the world's top performing hedge funds. For more information, see: http://www.lemelsoncapital.com.

Contact:
+Emmanuel Lemelson
Chief Investment Officer
Lemelson Capital Management, LLC
(508) 630-2281