Kevin O'Leary Shares SPAC Picks, Impressions

Entrepreneur and "Shark Tank" judge Kevin O’Leary shared his takeaways on special purpose acquisition companies Tuesday on CNBC’s "Halftime Report." 

Investing in Leadership: O’Leary said it’s smart to invest in operators with a "long track record of success," name-checking Bill Ackman, Michael Klein, Todd Boehly and Alec Gores.

“Do I want to bet with Bill? Sure I’ll give him some dough,” O’Leary said of Ackman. 

When speaking about Boehly, O’Leary said: "the guy’s track record is spectacular."

“I want to give these guys money to put to work for me.”

Ackman is behind Pershing Square Tontine PSTH, which raised $4 billion pricing units at $20 each. The stock closed Wednesday's session at $22.69 and has traded between $21.50 and $23.44 since going public.

Klein is one of the top names in the SPACs sector and recently launched his fifth. His Churchill Capital Corp III CCXX is set to merge with medical payments company MultiPlan.

Klein's also behind Churchill Capital Corp II CCX, Churchill Capital Corp IV CCIV and Churchill Capital Corp V CCV.

Churchill Capital Corp. merged with Clarivate Analytics CCC in 2019.

Gores is behind several SPACs, with Gores Holdings III GRSH and Gores Holdings V GRSV seeking acquisition targets.

Gores Metropoulos GMHI is set to merge with Luminar. Gores Holdings IV GHIV is seeking a merger with United Wholesale Mortgage.

Gores Holdings I merged with Hostess Brands TWNK.

Boehly is behind the Horizon Acquisition Corporation HZAC SPAC.

O'Leary On SPACs: O’Leary highlighted the opportunity to vote against an SPAC deal, and said they're a hedge against a market downturn.

“If I don’t like his deal, I can vote it down and get my cash back,” he said. “I find that very attractive.”

SPACs are not for everyone, and the S1s are long and complicated, the "Shark Tank" judge said.

“There’s a lot of really bad product out there.”

O’Leary’s Picks: CNBC showed three picks from O’Leary in the SPAC sector: Pershing Square Tontine, GS Acquisition Holdings II GSAH and Tailwind Acquisition TWND.

Benzinga file photo by Dustin Blitchok.