Pershing Square Holdings, the London-listed investment trust run by hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, has dropped 15% year-to-date as the escalating US trade war reverberates through global markets and punishes the fund’s concentrated equity positions, according to a report by the Financial Times.
The sharp decline highlights the vulnerability of even seasoned hedge fund managers to the rapidly shifting macro landscape under US President Donald Trump’s second-term tariff blitz — despite Ackman’s earlier support for the administration’s pro-business agenda.
Shares in the trust fell more than 3% on Monday alone, marking a deepening selloff that has left several of Pershing Square’s largest holdings – including Alphabet, Brookfield Asset Management, Chipotle, and Nike – down more than 20% since the start of 2025.
At the end of 2024, Alphabet and Brookfield were two of the trust’s top positions, valued at $2bn and $1.8bn, respectively, according to the firm’s annual report. The fund reported no hedges entering last week’s market turmoil, a fact that has left it fully exposed to the downside move triggered by Trump’s tariffs on more than 60 countries.
While the fund’s net asset value (NAV) was down just 1.2% through last Monday, the disparity between NAV and share price suggests heightened investor anxiety over Ackman’s concentrated equity exposure in a high-volatility environment.
Ackman, who emerged as one of Wall Street’s more vocal Trump backers during the 2024 campaign, has since taken a more critical stance as the market reaction to the administration’s aggressive trade policy intensifies. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) over the weekend, he warned that the US could face a self-inflicted economic shock if the administration continues its current path.
“If on April 9 we launch economic nuclear war on every country in the world, business investment will grind to a halt, consumers will close their wallets, and we will severely damage our reputation with the rest of the world,” he wrote.
Ackman also publicly called for a 90-day pause to renegotiate what he described as “unfair asymmetric tariff deals” and engaged in a brief but pointed social media exchange with US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, whom he later apologised for criticising.
Pershing Square isn’t the only hedge fund vehicle feeling the pinch. Dan Loeb’s Third Point Offshore Investors Ltd — also listed in London — has shed nearly 10% in 2025, with its NAV down 1.4% as of mid-last week, before the full impact of Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs had played out.
Ackman had been exploring a $25bn US-based investment vehicle last year as a step toward listing Pershing Square Capital Management in the US, but the plan has since been shelved amid market volatility. The firm continues to manage around $16bn, primarily through the publicly traded vehicle.
Despite the broader market pain, some of Pershing Square’s niche positions have delivered outsized gains. Investments in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — two mortgage finance giants Ackman has long bet will be privatised — have surged 60% and 32%, respectively, this year, as speculation builds over Trump’s intentions for housing reform.
Pershing Square declined to comment on the fund’s performance or current positioning.
