Greenwich Van Hedge Fund Index Returned 0.61% In February

by Carla Johnson, Investors Offshore.com

15 March 2007

The Greenwich Global Hedge Fund Index returned 0.61% in February, according to hedge fund index provider Greenwich Alternative Investments, LLC.

Greenwich said that its Investable Index has continued to achieve its investment objective of closely tracking the Global Index, returning 0.45% in February and 1.79% year-to-date - within two basis points of the Global Index, which is up 1.81% for the year.

By comparison, the S&P 500, MSCI World Equity Index, FTSE 100, and Lehman Aggregate Bond Index posted February returns of -0.96% (-0.48% YTD), -0.65% (+0.46% YTD), -0.51% (-0.79% YTD), and +1.54% (+1.50% YTD), respectively. In February, 12 of the 13 hedge fund strategies followed by the Global Index had positive returns, with 96% of reporting funds outperforming the S&P 500.

“Long-biased managers were able to mitigate the effects of February’s declining equities to end the month in positive territory,” notes Ben Rossman, General Manager.

“Hedge funds’ downside protection, coupled with their ability to capture market upside, continues to translate into superior risk-adjusted returns. During the last five years the Greenwich Global Hedge Fund Index has produced annualized returns of 9.54% with a maximum drawdown of -4.55%--outperforming the S&P 500, MSCI World Equity Index, and FTSE 100 which have had respective annualized returns of +6.81%, +9.13%, and +3.88%, with more severe drawdowns of -20.15%, -17.24%, and -29.40%.”

The Market Neutral Group gained 1.32% in February, for year-to-date returns of 2.70%. Increased market volatility and stable credit spreads favored convertible funds as enhanced investor appetite for equity upside boosted premiums for convertibles. The Greenwich Global Event-Driven, Market Neutral Arbitrage, and Equity Market Neutral strategies gained 1.87%, 1.11%, and 0.55%, respectively. February marks the 16th consecutive month of positive returns for the Market Neutral Group.

The Specialty Strategies Group gained 0.84% for the month. Income-based strategies led, amid a drop in treasury yields, returning 1.13%. Multi-Strategy and Emerging Market funds returned 0.81% and 0.79%, respectively.

The Long/Short Equity Group returned 0.76% in February. Dedicated short sellers capitalized on the market downturn, returning 1.73%. The Greenwich Global Value, Opportunistic, and Aggressive Growth strategies returned 0.89%, 0.67%, and 0.23%, respectively.

The Directional Trading Group ended February down -1.24%. The Greenwich Global Market Timing, Macro, and Futures strategies returned 1.21%, 0.51%, and -2.57%, respectively. Thus far, the February Index includes 1,018 funds.

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