Hedge funds post third straight month of losses in August: HFR
BOSTON (Reuters) - Hedge funds posted a third straight month of declines in August, with a 1.87 percent loss, as fears about slower growth in China, an interest rate hike in the United States and falling oil prices sent global stock markets tumbling, new data show.
The drop left the average fund nearly flat on the year, with a 0.18 percent gain in the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index since January, according to numbers released on Tuesday by tracking firm Hedge Fund Research.
Only managers who bet exclusively that securities will fall, so-called short sellers, posted gains, with a 5.03 percent increase last month, leaving them up 1.13 percent for the year to date. Activist investors, who often make big long bets hoping they can unlock value by prodding corporations into buying back shares or shaking up management, lost 3.46 percent last month, for a year-to-date gain of only 0.45 percent.
But even with the August declines - and with big-name managers ranging from Ray Dalio to David Einhorn posting losses last month - the average hedge fund outperformed the stock market. The benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 6.3 percent in August, its biggest monthly loss in more than three years.
The hedge fund declines in August followed a 1.24 percent drop in June and a 0.40 percent dip in July. The 1.87 percent fall in August ranks as the biggest loss since a decline of 2.61 percent in May 2012.
Also on Tuesday, tracking company Preqin released a list of funds that posted the most consistent returns over the last five years. Altum Credit Fund, Daniel Loeb's Third Point, KG Investments Fund, BNY Mellon ARX Extra FIM, Polygon Convertible Opportunity Fund, and a handful of funds from Peregrine Capital were among the most consistent performers.
(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Leslie Adler)
Serious News for Serious Traders! Try StreetInsider.com Premium Free!
You May Also Be Interested In
- BofA says there is a continued strength in buybacks
- Tequila maker Becle's profit shrinks on slowing liquor consumption
- S&P 500 ends higher as markets weigh rising yields, upbeat corporate results
Create E-mail Alert Related Categories
Hedge Funds, ReutersRelated Entities
Daniel Loeb, Greenlight Capital, David Einhorn, Third Point LLC, Hedge Funds, Bridgewater AssociatesSign up for StreetInsider Free!
Receive full access to all new and archived articles, unlimited portfolio tracking, e-mail alerts, custom newswires and RSS feeds - and more!