September has brought a much-needed reprieve for the global hedge fund industry following a year of mounting criticism and investor agitation over its high fees and disappointing performance.
Aggregate hedge funds gained 0.91 percent in September,according to data provider Preqin, compared to 0.02 percent for the benchmark S&P 500 equity index and 0.59 percent for a composite equity/bond benchmark composed of the MSCI World Index and the Citi World Government Bond index.
However, given the disparate nature of the hedge fund universe in terms of size and investment strategy, a clearer picture can be gained from analysing the performance of various strategies to draw conclusions about where managers have been delivering.
The key message from September has been the value of oft-questioned active management with the two outperforming strategies being equity hedge and event-driven.