Hedge funds bounce back

Hedge funds gained ground in April, bouncing back from a rough March, according to several hedge fund industry indicators. The Hedge Fund Research Inc. Fund Weighted Composite Index gained 1.64% in April, but is still down 1.78% on the year. The index had fallen 2.14% in March. The increase was led by HFR's Technology/Health Care, Emerging Market and Equity Hedge indexes, which increased 4.06%, 3.54% and 3.08% respectively. “The hedge fund industry recovered half its losses from the first quarter in April,” said Ken Heinz, president of Hedge Fund Research in Chicago. The Hennessee Hedge Fund Index, compiled by Hennessee Group LLC of New York, advanced 2.2%, but remains down -1.8% for the year. The Hennessee Hedge Fund Index fell 1.9% in March. Meanwhile, five of the six hedge fund strategies covered by Dow Jones Hedge Fund indexes posted net-of-fees gains in April. Dow Jones Indexes of New York said its Equity Long/Short strategy gained 3.54% during the month, while the Event Driven strategy posted a 2.6% return. The Convertible Arbitrage strategy fell 1.95%, posting the only losses for April. During the same period, The Standard & Poor's 500 Index advanced 4.8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 4.5% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 5.9%.