How Citadel, Millennium, Point72 and other hedge fund giants stack up as they enter the second half of a challenging year

The first half of 2023 was not how hedge fund managers drew it up. They invested heavily in global macro hiring late last year, expecting plenty more runway in the strategy's revival after a blockbuster 2022. 

But macro trading blew up this spring as the regional bank crisis in the US and the failure of Credit Suisse roiled markets and caught macro portfolio managers wrong-footed. What was supposed to be a bright spot has instead been among the worst-performing strategies of the year. 

The stock market, on the other hand, is having a bumper year — the S&P 500 increased 15.9% through June, its strongest first half in four years. Overall, the hedge fund industry lags far behind, gaining just 1.23% through May, according to the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index. 

But there have been bright spots. Multi-strategy hedge funds are constructed to ride these waves with less volatility than single-manager peers, and the industry's top multi-manager is having another stellar year: Ken Griffin's Citadel gained 7.15% in its flagship Wellington fund in the first half of the year, tops among its peers. 

Izzy Englander's Millennium got off to a slow start in 2023 — up just 0.40% in the first quarter — but led the major multi-strat funds in June with a 1.1% gain. The fund is now up 2.8% for the year. 

Here's how others stack up on the leaderboard halfway through the year (we'll update the list as more returns come through):

Representatives of the funds declined to comment or did not respond to emails seeking comment. 

Citadel's strength has been one of the few certainties in an otherwise uncertain year for hedge funds. Aside from its flagship fund, Citadel's Tactical Trading unit is up 9.36% midway through the year after gaining 2.07% in June. Its Global Equities group is up 8.43% and Global Fixed Income is up 4.39% through June.

Steve Cohen's Point72 has steadily climbed all year long, lingering just behind Citadel. It benefitted in part from avoiding the worst of the macro pain that battered so many other funds in March.