Billionaire stock pickers David Einhorn, Daniel Loeb and Barry Rosenstein on Wednesday told their wealthy investors they lost money in September as market turmoil inflicted more pain on some of America’s most prominent hedge funds.
The three men were among the first to tabulate their monthly performance numbers and their losses suggest that even bigger declines will be reported by other hedge funds in the days ahead, after global markets tumbled this month amid persistent fears that China’s economy is slowing.
Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital fund fell 3.6 per cent in September, leaving the US$11 billion firm off 17 per cent for the year to date, two people familiar with the figures said on Wednesday.
Loeb’s $17.5 billion Third Point fell 4.8 per cent in September. It is down 3.7 per cent for the year while his more aggressively positioned Third Point Ultra fund lost 6.7 per cent, putting it off 7.5 per cent for the year, a person familiar with the numbers said.
Rosenstein’s $11 billion Jana Partners lost 3.8 per cent in September and is now off 6.6 per cent, a person familiar with the numbers said.
Their losses largely mirrored the 3.52 per cent decline in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index in September, but that is certain to raise questions about the funds’ hefty fees and promises to protect investors, including pension funds, in down markets.