Bridgewater Associates founder, president and CIO Ray Dalio. Photo: David A.Grogan/CNBC/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Bridgewater Associates bet more than $1 billion that either the S&P 500, the Euro Stoxx 50 or both will fail by March, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The big picture: The massive wager is one of a growing number of bearish trades as stock markets reach new highs and as some investors worry about a correction. It's also caused the price of some options to rise.
What to watch: March 2020 is well into the Democratic primaries. If Sen. Elizabeth Warren wins the Democratic nomination or the presidency, some financial predictions show markets will fall.
- As Axios' Dan Primack has reported, Warren has put a bullseye on Wall Street, private equity and her overall fight against corporations.
Bridgewater declined to comment on its trades to WSJ: "We have no positions that are intended to either hedge or bet on any potential political developments in the U.S."
- Its founder, Ray Dalio, tweeted later on Friday that the article is "wrong": "I want to make clear that we don’t have any such net bet that the stock market will fall."
Go deeper: Elizabeth Warren's frontrunner status is bad news for private equity
Editor's note: This article has been updated to include a tweet from Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio.