- Flagship strategy now down 4.8% YTD; Ackman shorting Hong Kong dollar
- “The peg no longer makes sense for Hong Kong,” says Ackman
- First back-to-back stock market gains since last year
Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Holdings returned 8.2% in November, reducing its year-to-date loss to 4.8%.
The New York manager is now in sight of a flat year despite spending most of 2022 in double-digit loss territory.
The $12.7bn listed unit invests entirely in Pershing’s Square long-only portfolio since he moved away from short bets. The firm as a whole runs $15.8bn.
Ackman was in the headlines in November, however, for shorting the Hong Kong dollar in a bet its peg to the US dollar would break as US rates rise.
“The peg no longer makes sense for Hong Kong and it is only a matter of time before it breaks,” he said on Twitter. Pershing Square has taken the notional short position through the ownership of put options.
Kyle Bass and Boaz Weinstein are among other hedge fund managers shorting the peg.
Pershing Square’s portfolio of large-cap bets rose in another strong month for stocks — the S&P 500 rose 5.4% — on more hopes of a soft landing for the US economy.
October and November saw the first back-to-back monthly gains in stocks since last year. Pershing Square Holdings rose 9.9% in October, the S&P 500 8%.