Hedge funds delivered one of their strongest monthly performances in recent years in April, recovering decisively from March’s losses as gains were broad-based across all major investment strategy groupings, according to data from the Citco group of companies (Citco).
The weighted average return across the $1.3trn in hedge fund assets administered by Citco group of companies stood at 5.6% for the month. Nearly 90% of funds posted positive returns, lifting year-to-date performance to 4.1% after the sharp reversal in sentiment.
Equity strategies led the recovery, generating a weighted average return of 7% in April, followed closely by Global Macro strategies at 6%. Multi-Strategy funds returned 4.7%, while Commodities strategies posted a 2.8% gain.
More defensive and relative-value approaches also contributed to the broad advance. Fixed Income Arbitrage strategies gained 1.9%, while Event Driven funds rose 1.3%, as losses recorded in March were largely unwound.
Larger managers outperformed across size cohorts, marking a reversal from the prior month’s pattern. Funds with more than $3bn in assets under administration (AUA) delivered the strongest returns at 6.7%. They were followed by funds in the $500m–$1bn range at 4.4%, and those under $200m at 4.1%. Mid-sized managers between $1bn–$3bn returned 3.8%, while the $200m–$500m cohort lagged at 2.9%.
Dispersion across managers remained elevated in April, with return spreads widening further to 11.2%, up from 10.2% in March, highlighting continued divergence in performance despite the broad-based rally.
