Key Takeaways
- • Ken Griffin's Citadel flagship fund Wellington returned 0.9% in August, reaching 4.8% year-to-date, with the equities-only fund posting 1.6% monthly gains (8% YTD) and tactical trading fund up 1.9% (10.4% YTD).
- • Izzy Englander's Millennium Management gained 1.2% in August to reach 4.4% year-to-date returns, marking continued recovery after consecutive losses in February and March 2025.
- • Balyasny returned 0.7% in August with 8.6% year-to-date performance; ExodusPoint (Michael Gelband) led peer group with 10.3% returns through August driven by fixed-income strength; Boothbay Capital (Ari Glass) posted 9.8% YTD gains.
- • Global equity markets advanced for the fourth consecutive month in August with S&P 500 hitting multiple all-time highs despite softening growth signals from Nvidia; year-to-date equity market returns approached 10%.
- • Multistrategy hedge funds demonstrated resilience across diversified strategies, with stockpicking and quantitative trading strategies driving outperformance during a sustained bull market environment.
Summary
Major multistrategy hedge funds delivered positive August returns as global equity markets continued their advance, with the S&P 500 reaching multiple all-time highs and marking the fourth consecutive month of gains. Citadel, Millennium Management, and other institutional-grade hedge funds capitalized on market strength despite headwinds from technology sector leaders, particularly chipmaker Nvidia, which showed signs of moderating growth momentum.
Citadel's performance underscored the breadth of its multistrategy approach. The flagship Wellington fund returned 0.9% in August, bringing year-to-date returns to 4.8%. More significantly, Citadel's equities-only fund posted 1.6% gains in August (8% year-to-date), while its tactical trading fund, which blends fundamental stock-picking with quantitative models, returned 1.9% last month and 10.4% year-to-date. A source close to the Miami-based firm attributed August's strength to particularly strong performance from both stockpicking and quantitative trading teams.
Millennium Management, led by Izzy Englander, posted 1.2% returns in August, reaching 4.4% year-to-date. This represented meaningful recovery for the firm, which had experienced consecutive monthly losses in February and March 2025—a rare occurrence for the large multistrategy manager. Balyasny, the Chicago-based hedge fund, advanced 0.7% in August with year-to-date returns of 8.6%.
Beyond top-tier managers, secondary multistrategy players posted strong results. Michael Gelband's ExodusPoint delivered the highest returns among named firms, reaching 10.3% through August by leveraging fixed-income expertise. Boothbay Capital, the $2.5 billion New York-based firm managed by Ari Glass, gained 1.4% in August to reach 9.8% year-to-date returns. These results reflected a favorable environment for diversified strategies, with global equity markets delivering approximately 10% year-to-date returns despite volatility in individual mega-cap stocks.
Citadel's performance underscored the breadth of its multistrategy approach. The flagship Wellington fund returned 0.9% in August, bringing year-to-date returns to 4.8%. More significantly, Citadel's equities-only fund posted 1.6% gains in August (8% year-to-date), while its tactical trading fund, which blends fundamental stock-picking with quantitative models, returned 1.9% last month and 10.4% year-to-date. A source close to the Miami-based firm attributed August's strength to particularly strong performance from both stockpicking and quantitative trading teams.
Millennium Management, led by Izzy Englander, posted 1.2% returns in August, reaching 4.4% year-to-date. This represented meaningful recovery for the firm, which had experienced consecutive monthly losses in February and March 2025—a rare occurrence for the large multistrategy manager. Balyasny, the Chicago-based hedge fund, advanced 0.7% in August with year-to-date returns of 8.6%.
Beyond top-tier managers, secondary multistrategy players posted strong results. Michael Gelband's ExodusPoint delivered the highest returns among named firms, reaching 10.3% through August by leveraging fixed-income expertise. Boothbay Capital, the $2.5 billion New York-based firm managed by Ari Glass, gained 1.4% in August to reach 9.8% year-to-date returns. These results reflected a favorable environment for diversified strategies, with global equity markets delivering approximately 10% year-to-date returns despite volatility in individual mega-cap stocks.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.