David Harding’s Winton Hedge Fund Slumps 9% Amid Market Sell-Off

(Bloomberg) -- David Harding’s Winton Fund lost nearly 9% last week amid a coronavirus-fueled sell-off that rocked global markets.

The $7.6 billion multi-strategy fund, which uses computer-driven models to trade across asset classes, ended February down 5.7%, according to a letter to investors seen by Bloomberg. That stands in contrast to some other hedge funds, such as the those run by bearish managers Russell Clark and Crispin Odey, that posted gains at the end of last month during the fastest stock market correction ever.

A spokesman for London-based Winton declined to comment.

The Winton Fund, which previously bet on market trends, had been transforming itself into a money pool that combines various investment strategies to diversify and produce consistent returns. It has made money in five of the last seven years. Trend-following funds lost 4% in first four days of trading last week and were up 1.2% through Feb 27. last month, according to the SG Trend Index.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nishant Kumar in London at nkumar173@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shelley Robinson at ssmith118@bloomberg.net, Patrick Henry, Marion Dakers

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