PhillyInc

One of the big-bucks hedge funds that helped US Airways Group Inc. come out of bankruptcy almost two years ago has cashed in on its investment, saying it thinks the current up cycle in the airline business may have run its course. PAR Investment Partners L.P. put up $100 million in September 2005, a transaction that was crucial at the time because it helped bring other private equity firms into the deal. PAR later acquired more shares in private transactions, eventually controlling about 14 percent of the airline. The Boston firm sold 6.5 million US Airways shares in February, and this week sold an additional 6.75 million, at $35.90 a share. This week’s transaction alone grossed more than $242 million, providing a nice return on that initial investment. The buyers in both cases were other big investment bankers, the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and UBS Securities L.L.C., which yesterday downgraded airline stocks. -- Tom Belden