Insights
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Pivotal Point of View – December 2019
The PivotalPath Hedge Fund Composite Index finished 2019 up 8.8%. Equity Sector (+15.6%) and Equity Diversified (+12.7%) led the way, while Credit (+4.1%) trailed the pack. In addition to generating the best performance in 5 years, all strategies generated significant alpha in 2019.
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Hedge Fund Launches & Liquidations – A More Accurate Picture
When it comes to hedge fund launches and closures, the right questions and the right data can tell a very different story.
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Pivotal Point of View – November 2019
In November, hedge funds were up across most strategies. Two indices in particular, Equity Diversified (+11.0%) and Equity Sector (+13.0%), crossed into double-digit returns for the year.
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Lack of Liquidity in Japan
A lack of liquidity lurks beneath the bullish case for investing in Japan. The question is, is this liquidity crunch temporary or structural?
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Singapore: The Next Hedge Fund Hub of Asia?
On a recent research trip, we learned firsthand how the 2019 Hong Kong protests could shape Singapore’s future as the next financial hub of Asia.
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Flight to Quality in Leveraged Loans
Hedge fund managers weigh in on whether the recent selloff in leveraged loans is an opportunity or cause for concern.
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Correlations Are Falling – Here’s What That Means for Manager Selection in 2020
What happens when correlations fall, and dispersion is on the rise?
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Pivotal Point of View – October 2019
Despite intra-month volatility, most core strategies were flat to modestly positive in October – with the exception of Managed Futures, which was down 2.5%.
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SaaS Falls from the Clouds
Several high-profile TMT managers were down big in September. However, investors should be confident that this was nothing out of the norm.
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Pivotal Point of View – September 2019
For the first time this year, and despite a challenging September, all hedge fund strategies have crossed into positive territory year-to-date.
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SaaS is the New FAANG
What’s separating top TMT managers from the bottom ones this year? The title of this insight should provide a clue.
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Pivotal Point of View – August 2019
For the first time since January, Equity Sector is no longer the top performing strategy of 2019. Managed Futures now sits atop the pack.
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Healthcare is Hot for Hedge Funds
In part two of our series, we look at volatility and dispersion among healthcare subsectors.
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Pivotal Point of View – July 2019
Managed Futures topped both performance and alpha rankings for the month, while Equity Sector strategies remained at the top for 2019.
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Is Healthcare Just What the Doctor Ordered?
In part one of our two part series, we look at healthcare over time as well as side by side compared to other industries.
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Pivotal Point of View – June 2019
Hedge funds came back swinging in June, though not all gains were shared equally.
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Pivotal Point of View – May 2019
Welcome to The Pivotal Point of View! Starting this month, we are going to provide a monthly snapshot of how the core strategies we track are performing.
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Want to Make Money in the Markets? Try Buying some Weed
Significant outperformance relative to peers, especially in difficult years, can have lasting influence on future fund evaluation and investment decisions. Accordingly, some of these same managers are still catching investors’ attention today. What might be the secret? Cannabis.
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How Important is “Alpha Generation” Really to Hedge Fund Investors?
In early 2019, J.P. Morgan surveyed hedge fund investors to identify their reasons for investing in this space – 88% of respondents cited “alpha generation” as one of the top three motivations. If this is the case for such a high number of investors, it’s important to look at the strategies being pursued in the quest for alpha to see what’s working and what isn’t. We crunched the numbers and found that it’s a good time for a gut check.
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A Junk Rally in Hedge Funds?
What if we told you that one risk factor can explain most of the significant dispersion in returns in the first quarter of 2019? That factor is the Bloomberg US Pure Leverage Portfolio (“Leverage”), a measurement that tracks U.S. companies that are highly indebted, or leveraged. Put another way, it is a measure of quality.
