A HEDGE FUND GETS CLIPPED (BW's "Up Front" Sep. 28, 1998--Marty)
IT'S A DOUBLE WHAMMY for Julian Robertson Jr. and his $22 billion hedge-fund group, Tiger Management Corp.: Robertson recently told investors that the funds lost $600 million in August from Russian-denominated debt. But September's news is worse: Tiger lost 12.6%, or about $2 billion, between Aug. 28 and Sept. 8, according to performance figures for the offshore Jaguar fund, which mirrors the performance of all Tiger funds. It was one of the worst short-term declines in hedge fund history, dwarfing even the 9.7%--or $1 billion--George Soros' Quantum fund lost in August.
A Robertson spokesman declined to comment publicly on the reason for the drop. However sources close to the fund blamed a good part of the plunge on a bet on the dollar vs. the yen; the yen has climbed against the dollar in recent weeks. Most of the loss took place in early September.
The Tiger funds are down 9% this month, through Sept. 15. Despite the recent losses, Tiger is up 15.9% this year, after fees. It is now the largest hedge fund group, surpassing Soros' Quantum group.
Gary Weiss
EDITED BY JOAN OLECK
Copyright 1998, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. |
