It wasn't just Target's off-target results that battered U.S. stocks on Wednesday, when the stock market as tracked by the S&P 500 had its worst day in nearly two years.
Tom Hayes, chairman and managing member of Great Hill Capital, said that the liquidation of Melvin Capital played a major role.
The $7.8 billion fund is shutting down late Wednesday, the firm announced. Hayes said that the thing about a liquidation is that you don't send the letter until after you have done the selling or the vultures will come in and pick you off like a super slow warrior at a paintball park.
Melvin Capital's 13 F filing shows the top holdings at the end of the first quarter.
If you were wondering why Amazon, Expedia, and Uber UBER were selling off like they were going out of business, the exact opposite is true, they are leaders in their fields, says Hayes.
Tiger Global, including Tiger Global, have been under pressure this year, with Tiger Global losing an estimated $17 billion. Hayes says the Tiger cubs moved to sell their technology holdings at once in April and early May.
Now that the source of the clog has been revealed, the acute pain is likely to be in the rear view mirror. Hayes adds that we may get a few aftershocks, but the cat is out of the bag at this point.