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Amid the current market turmoil, this is our regular report on hedge fund and alternative asset managers who are bucking the trend.

Volatility drives performance

After strong performance in the first quarter of 2020, Little Harbor Advisors two strategies top Morningstar's ETF Managed Portfolios database. Little Harbor US Equity Smart Index leads the pack on both 1-year and 3-year gross returns, while Alpha Seeker holds the top spot for the 5-year gross returns. The strategies ended Q1 with composite gross return of 31.44% (1-year) and 21.64% (3-year) for Smart Index, and 12.05% (5-year) for Alpha Seeker.

"With some of the lowest and highest VIX readings in history, the last 5 years have certainly been a thorough test of the proposition that risk management and preservation of capital in market down-drafts can provide significant performance benefits," Little Harbor said in an update to investors reviewed by Opalesque. "Our performance year to date proves this isn't just a flash in the pan."

Both strategies are designed to take a view of volatility in the market. The U.S. Equity Smart Index Strategy offers exposure to the S&P 500 with a risk management overlay that attempts to preserve capital in times of volatility. The Alpha Seeker strategy is designed to provide uncorrelated returns by quantifying the behavior of volatility and estimating the direction of the S&P 500.

US Smart Equity Index ended March up 19.5% and is up 16.6% YTD. The Alpha Seeker Strategy is up 11.2% in March and is up 12.4% YTD.

Tactical allocations

Swiss fund Tramondo Investment Partners AG benefitted from March volatility by taking the opportunity to make tactical allocations. "A positive contribution came from several areas such as long and short future investing, market-neutral investments (pair trades), US-Treasuries and some trading in Swiss Blue-Chip stocks as well as gold. February and March offered tailwinds and severe headwinds and we were able to adjust our sails to take advantage of the increased volatility," the fund said in a performance update to investors reviewed by Opalesque. "For the quarter, our top contributors were long US-long dated Treasury futures, long & short futures trading in EURO STOXX 50, FTSEMIB (Italy) and S&P 500, a pair trade (market-neutral) consisting of long S&P 500/short Russell 2000 and gold while our worst contributors were emerging market related positions and single equities."

Tramondo's flagship strategy was up in March. GreyJung Global Opportunities was up 2.61% for the month and is up 3.81% YTD. The all-weather long/short strategy invests in equities, fixed income, and commodities.

Looking ahead, the fund expects a very turbulent global market and said in its latest update to investors that it was positioning itself defensively, such that no single asset class will materially impact the portfolio.

India Outperforms

While emerging markets have been hit hard by the recent drawdown, some strategies have been able to outperform. Elysium Investment Advisors flagship India Market Neutral Fund has rebounded after a few turbulent years.

The Elysium India Fund is part of Alpha Alternatives, a multi-manager, multi-strategy platform that manages/advises over USD 300mn across equities, commodities, fixed income and currencies. The senior management at Alpha Alternatives comprises industry veterans who have over 100 years of combined experience in investment management. The firm invests significant proprietary capital in all the strategies it backs before raising outside capital. The firm also has a unique entrepreneur partner concept where all fund managers are significant stakeholders in their individual strategies.

Vineet Sachdeva the fund's co-owner and portfolio manager, was previously the co-head of the India Alternatives business at D. E. Shaw & Co.

Vineet Sachdeva, Elysium CEO and the fund's portfolio manager was previously the co-head of the India Alternatives business at D. E. Shaw & Co.

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Prior issues of The Corona Fighters Report:
Report 1; Report 2; Report 3; Report 4; Report 5; Report 6; Report 7; Report 8; Report 9; Report 10; Report 11; Report 12; Report 13; and Report 14.

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Disclaimer: This is not investment advice. Opalesque has not verified this information and gives no warranty of accuracy or completeness. Past performance is not indicative of future results. See our Terms & Conditions for more information.

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