Hedge funds drag Pengana down
Negative returns across its hedge fund investments has left listed investment vehicle Pengana Managers over $1 million in the red.
Share holders of Pengana Managers were given the bad news at the company’s annual general meeting in Sydney this morning by chairman Roger Davis.
Davis said Pengana Managers had recorded a net loss after tax of $1.105 million for the 2004-05 financial year.
The poor results have contributed to the company’s share price dropping to a “double digit percentage discount”, said Davis.
The majority of Pengana’s money is invested in different hedge fund strategies across four unit trusts: Percon Managed Futures Unit Trust (100 per cent ownership), the Camelotfund Global Macro Unit Trust (77 per cent), the Cape Leeuwin Capital Australian Long Short Equities Fund (100 per cent) and the Stanley Global Resources Market Neutral Fund (100 per cent).
Overall returns for the financial year were negative 1.3 per cent with Cape Leeuwin Capital the only manager to post a positive annual return of 9.5 per cent.
The losses however, came in a bad year overall for hedge funds with the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index producing only a small positive return of 1.1 per cent.
Davis said the board was confident performance would improve going forward thanks to a portfolio restructure.
Recommended for you
Australian fund managers are actively seeking to launch Cayman versions of their funds to attract offshore flows, with Regal Partners set to launch its latest offering this month.
As private markets gain traction in Australia but only a limited pool of talent is available, three recruiters explore whether fund managers should consider looking overseas to find top talent.
With an explosion of private credit managers appearing in the market, two alternatives experts believe a consolidation is needed to maintain the quality of the sector.
Bentham Asset Management has become the latest fund manager to expand its distribution team as it reports increased interest in its credit strategies.
